


The Spirit of Christmas

by Phoenix_Rises_Again



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Angst, Christmas, Deceit, Endgame Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan, F/F, F/M, Ghost Regina, Ghosts, Lies, Murder Mystery, Slow Burn, Treachery, lawyer Emma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2019-01-23
Packaged: 2019-09-25 06:37:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 45,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17116304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoenix_Rises_Again/pseuds/Phoenix_Rises_Again
Summary: (SWANQUEEN AU) Emma Swan is a successful lawyer about to make partner if she can just close out the Mills Estate and sell the Storybrooke Inn before the end of the year.  Emma will find it's not going to be as easy as she thought it would be when a meddlesome mystery woman continues to thwart her efforts every step of the way.  When Emma discovers that the woman is not only irritating but also not quite as human as she'd originally thought, things get interesting.*Based on the completely cheesy Lifetime Movie of the same title.  Just watched it and it screamed Swan Queen and it's nearly Christmas. I also haven't been inspired to write in years so figured I'd take the chance while I could.  Hoping to update and finish quickly but life happens.  The story will be finished no matter what.  I do not own any of the characters, most of the plot, and some of the dialogue.  I definitely own all of the grammar and spelling errors.*





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As stated in the summary, this is based on a Lifetime Christmas Movie of the same title. There is a major character death at the beginning as part of the plot but while I love to wallow in angst, I do promise a happy ending for Swan Queen.
> 
> Again, for the record, I do not own or claim to own the characters, most of the plot and some of the dialogue in this work of fiction. ABC/Disney and Lifetime have respective ownership rights.

**Prologue**

 

**Storybrooke, 1923**

_Regina trudged through the knee high snow, the bitter winter wind cutting through all of her bundled layers but she refused to let it slow her down.  She had an objective and she wasn’t going to let a bit of snow and some wind stop her from achieving it.  The surrounding forest was dark and quiet around her, the snow making sure the only sounds were her heavy breathing and the crunching of snow beneath her fraying snow shoes.  She’d been traveling for miles, a woman on a mission indeed.  As she finally reached the outer edges of the property, she allowed herself a brief respite and came to a stop.  Doubling over, she rested her hands on her knees as her breaths came in gasps, her exhale hanging frozen in the air in front of her.  Knowing she was later than she’d intended already, she straightened herself out and reached a hand into her jacket pocket where she fished out her gold pocket watch._  
****

_Popping it open, she smirked as she saw the time was just a few moments prior to midnight.She’d made it. She looked up, her triumphant gaze landing on the grand white victorian era style home in front of her.The lights inside were all on, bathing the surrounding area in warm light as the soft piano notes of Maple Leaf Rag and a lively party filtered out.Regina smirked at the irony of the song playing, seeing it as more than fitting for her return home from the Great North.The plain white Christmas lights wound around the front porch’s pillars warmly beckoned visitors inside, the happy feelings they invoked matching the cheerful wreath hung upon the home’s front door.The Christmas decorations were a new addition, but other than them, the home was as Regina had left it a few weeks prior.Her smile broadened as the person she cared for most in the world suddenly stepped out onto the porch._

_“Robin,” she breathed, the word lost in the now louder piano music that spilled from the still open doorway of the home._

_She watched the man she loved wrap himself up in a thick winter jacket as he braved the frigid cold.Before she could move or call out, Robin was quickly followed by another familiar yet slightly concerning person, her sister- Zelena.Regina watched, the smile quickly dying on her lips, as Zelena pulled Robin into a tight and intimate hug.They embraced for a few moments before they both pulled slightly back and Zelena’s hands came up to cup Robin’s face.Feeling as though someone had punched through her chest and was slowly and painfully squeezing her heart, Regina swallowed and decisively closed her pocket watch with a snap.As she dropped it into her pocket, she suddenly felt a blinding pain blossoming at the base of her skull.It attacked her with such ferocity that her knees buckled immediately and she collapsed to the ground, helpless to keep herself upright._

_The deep snow rushed up to envelope her as stars clouded her vision and the warm stickiness of her own blood began pooling beneath her head and shoulders.As she gasped for breath, she found it more and more difficult to actually draw any air into her screaming lungs.She struggled to cry out, to make any noise at all and alert Robin and Zelena- who were mere yards away- to her plight but found her voice suddenly paralyzed and unwilling to cooperate.As she felt her life dwindling with each sluggish beat of her heart, Regina reached a single hand out to Robin, willing him to see her lying in the snow.With a final gasp, her hand fell limply back to the snow beneath it and she became as still and as silent as the rest of the forest surrounding her._

 

**Chapter One**

**Boston, Present Day**

Emma shoveled the last bit of her creme brûlée into her mouth, the savory dessert practically melting on her tongue.  Licking the absolute last morsel off her fork, she hungrily eyed her date’s ramekin full of the creamy custard and caramelized sugar that had remained largely untouched in front of him.  Before she could ask if he was going to actually eat it or just stare at it, he suddenly dropped his spoon in favor of reaching out to grab her hand.    
 ****

“Emma,” he began, his eyes pinning her with a level of serious that instantly had her tensing up and fighting the instinct to run. 

“Yes, Killian?”Emma hesitantly put down her fork, falling into the fake happy smile she plastered on her face any time she was faced with actually having to possibly express her feelings.

“You are…amazing,” Killian began, his nerves suddenly making themselves known as his hand became clammy on hers, his voice shaking.“I knew when we met, the man who won you would be…beyond lucky.”

Emma felt her blood run cold as her heart tripled its normal rhythm and her smile froze on her face.She’d only been dating Killian for six months and in those six months, there had not even been the flicker of a spark between them.The only reason Emma had continued to agree to dates with the man was because she was rounding the corner on 28 and sprinting towards 40.She’d resigned herself to being a spinster until she’d bumped into Killian at the fish market downtown.He was nice enough but he was dreadfully dull and never gave her incentive to make him a priority in her life.Shaking herself back to reality, Emma subtly tried to extricate her hand from his but found it secured as though in a vice.It seemed Killian was trying to find the strength to ground himself in her.Warning alarms were blaring in her mind screaming at her to run, but she strangely found herself rooted to her seat.

“Um,” Emma began, her mind going blank as she tried and failed to swallow the sudden fear bubbling up in her throat.

Killian caressed the back of her hand with his thumb, the gesture meant to be reassuring but falling far from its mark. 

“Emma…”Killian almost appeared ill with how white his face had become and beads of sweat were blooming on his forehead. 

Killian seemed to be struggling with how best to phrase the next part of his speech, and Emma was beginning to feel a bit lightheaded herself as she waited for what was clearly going to be a marriage proposal to fall from Killian’s mouth.Her nerves ramped up another level as Killian seemingly gathered himself and just before Emma could divert the conversation, words were spilling out of her date’s mouth like vomit.

“That man just isn’t me.”Killian exhaled heavily at the end of the statement and his hand relaxed on hers allowing her to pull her hand back slightly.

“I’m sorry?”Emma assumed she had misheard him due to the rushing of blood in her ears.

“You’re beautiful.”Killian rushed to reassure her, the sincerity of his words reflected in the seriousness of his expression as he leaned in towards her.“And smart and I know that somewhere deep inside you is a woman capable of great love.”

Emma stared open-mouthed at Killian as he prattled on, seemingly oblivious to her gaze.

“The problem is,” Killian continued, not in the least bit discouraged by the fact that Emma had yet to say a full sentence in response, “I don’t bring that out in you…and I never will.”

Finally gathering her thoughts and righting herself from the completely unexpected direction that their conversation had taken, Emma leaned forward herself.“Are you breaking up with me?”

Killian looked around at the other tables nearby, as though gauging how big a scene Emma was about to make.“Yes.”

“Oh, thank god!” Emma exclaimed as she exhaled in relief and slumped back in her seat.”She picked up her glass of wine and drained the remainder of it in one long sip before running a hand through her hair.“I thought you were proposing!”

Based on the shocked look on Killian’s face at her revelation, she could see just how wrong she’d been.For the briefest of moments, she felt a pang that he clearly had just as little interest in her romantically as she had in him, but then she chastised herself for having double standards and grabbed his wine glass instead. 

“I know this may seem sudden but it’s something thats been lurking since, well, the beginning.”Killian eyed her with concern as she took a healthy sip from his wine glass before substituting it for the bread they had left from before their main course.“I know being a lawyer can be an all consuming job, but if you really wanted us to work, you’d make me a priority.”

Emma nodded along with him as he spoke, silently agreeing as she tore into the soft rolls in front of her desperate for something to distract herself with.She tried her best to appear understanding and interested in what he was saying, but to be honest, she found the bread more intriguing than him.

“True,” she agreed as she picked up a second roll.  
  
“I’m just not your priority,” Killian finished tentatively, as though afraid he was going to upset her.

“You are so not,” Emma quickly and happily reassured him.“Also, you’re tired of dating someone who hasn’t learned how to love.”

Killian’s brow furrowed as his eyes flicked away from hers nervously.“I never said that.”

“Neal did.College boyfriend,”Emma explained at Killian’s confused look.“Graham called me his phantom girl.It was cute…until it wasn’t.”

Killian leaned back from her, the confusion on his face only growing.

“And Whale told me I should go to love repair boot camp.”When Killian appeared startled at the last revelation, Emma just explained further.“Because of my childhood.Who even knew there was such a thing?”  
  
Emma smirked to herself as understanding seemed to dawn on Killian, noting the exact moment he realized that she wasn’t even the least bit upset by his breaking up with her.

“You’ve heard this before.”Killian leaned back from the table and crossed his arms, an indecipherable look crossing his features.

“Mhm.Yeah, lots,” Emma confirmed as she finished the last bite of her roll and focused on Killian’s still as of yet untouched dessert.“See now, I’m not gonna pretend to feel something that I don’t.You’re so right…I don’t feel anything.Are you gonna eat that?”

Killian appeared startled at the complete change of topic, his mouth hanging open as Emma helped herself to a bite of his creme brûlée.

“Mmm!” Emma wasted no time in pulling his ramekin towards her, a moan of delight escaping her as she dove into the second helping of custard.

Taking that as his cue, Killian threw his napkin on the table and left Emma to his- now her- dessert.Once he’d gone, Emma found herself more content alone with the second dessert than she had in the entire six months that she’d dated Killian. 

**XXX**

Emma was busily typing away on her computer, her focus trying to close out the last estate sale that she’d brokered for her firm.  The work was tedious, but it gave Emma some fulfillment knowing that she was often the one ensuring that a person’s last requests and wishes were granted.  She certainly felt more accomplished these days as compared to her job as a bail bonds person five years ago, but she would never change her past for anything- it had made her who she was.  Emma was so focused on the legal jargon spewing from her well versed hands that she didn’t even notice her boss, Mr. Gold, walk in until the fairly thick manila folder he’d been carrying crashed on to her desk.  Emma jumped, startled out of the flow of her current project, and looked up at Gold with a mild annoyance.

“Cora Mills finally died,” Gold advised her without preamble or emotion.“Old hag was older than God Himself.”

“And good morning, Mr. Gold,” Emma sighed, not managing to completely mask the sarcasm in her tone.

“It was,” Gold muttered, either oblivious to Emma’s attitude or not in a mood to deal with it.“Visions of my Bahamas vacation were dancing in my head until I got this news.”

Emma smirked to herself, just the slightest bit amused at Gold’s clear irritation and scooped up the file Gold had so ungracefully deposited onto her desk.  
  
“Guess what I don’t want to think about on my Bahamas vacation,” Gold continued, his tone taking on a slight edge as Emma thumbed through the paperwork.

“Cora Mills?” Emma chanced a glance up at Mr. Gold, catching the humorless smile that crossed his features and finally broke the stone look upon his face.

“You’re quick, dearie,” Gold mused, somehow managing to make the compliment sound like more of an insult.Emma shook her head and looked back at the folder in her hands, actually taking the time to open it and go through it more thoroughly.“I knew there was a reason I came to you first.”

“I also never have Christmas plans,” Emma pointed out, finishing Gold’s thought for him.

“That too,” Gold conceded without remorse.“It’s a simple execution of her will, mostly.”

Emma didn’t bother looking up at that.“How many assets?”

“Just the one big one,” Gold replied as he stared down at his nose at her, seemingly daring her to refuse the case load.  
Emma knew better than to back down from a challenge, however, and held his gaze with her own that had been forged over years in the foster system.After a brief beat of silence and a battle of the wills, Gold finally sighed and turned to leave.

“Come along, dearie,” he beckoned her with a hand, already sweeping out of her office and headed towards his.  
  
Emma rolled her eyes at his retreating back but stood to follow nonetheless.She had recently heard rumblings around the office that the firm was looking for a new partner to replace Gold’s son, Neal, who had left abruptly the past month.Even the most salacious gossipers in the office hadn’t uncovered what had prompted his departure- though most were leaning towards a sexual harassment suit- and Emma wasn’t willing to compromise any chance she had at a promotion by engaging in a petty war of the wills.Emma followed Gold into his office, marveling at the various antiques that lined the walls, bookshelves, and surfaces.Every time she walked in to his office, it seemed as though he had acquired some new trinket or piece of memorabilia from a time long since forgotten.Gold walked over to his computer and gestured at Emma to join him.On the screen before them was a photograph of a rather old but grand looking white Victorian style home that appeared pristinely maintained.

“Holy shit,” Emma blurted without thinking as she leaned in to get a better look.

Gold raised an eyebrow but excused the outburst and turned back to his computer.“Storybrooke Inn,” he told her.“Nice, huh?”  
  
“Charming,” she replied distractedly as she continued to study the photograph.“Who gets it?”  
  
“No heirs,” Gold shrugged.“So to the trust it goes and they want it sold quickly. _Before_ they get hit with taxes.”

“When would they like it sold by?”Working a time line out in her head, Emma guessed she could have it inspected and sold within two months, best case scenario.

“End of the year,” Gold stated as though it wasn’t going to be an issue.

“But that’s in three weeks!”Emma stood and faced the imp of a man before her, panic and anger radiating off of her in sudden waves.“That’s impossible.”

“I know,” Gold agreed.Looking around, Gold leaned in towards Emma before lowering his voice.“Between you and me, the firm is looking for a new partner to fill Neal’s old position.That’s a senior associate position.While I can’t make any guarantees, I can go to bat for you over August.”

“That’s-”Emma had to work to keep her smile from spreading over her face.She flattened her hands over her suit jacket, smoothing out the imaginary wrinkles in it while she gathered herself.“Thank-you, Mr. Gold.”

“We both know it’s selfish, dearie,” Gold admitted reluctantly.“You work harder than anyone here and that makes my life easier.”

Nodding her head, Emma mentally reevaluated the time line she’d previously had in mind for selling the property.“Ok, well, I will have the business evaluations done right away.I’ll examine the books, hire a local appraiser-”

“That’s strangely not as easy as it seems,” Gold cut in as he picked up a piece of paper from his desk and examined it. 

“Why?”Emma leaned in to try and see what he was looking at.

“I’ve already hired two companies.Both…failed,” Gold revealed rather ominously as he handed Emma the paper.

Glancing at it, she saw it was a news clipping from the Storybrooke Daily Mirror.The headline read: _Haunted Storybrooke Inn._

“Oh come on.”Emma looked up at Gold with contempt and disbelief etched on her face.

“I know,” Gold replied with just as much disbelief. “Fourty-Five percent of the population still believes in ghosts and as of right now, so do one hundred percent of our appraisers.”

“So hire someone else,” Emma demanded, refusing to be discouraged over some bogus bedtime stories.

“Already have, Ms. Swan,” Gold assured her, the use of her name signifying that she was dangerously close to the end of his patience.“Mr. Geppetto will be at the Inn on the 12th and so will you.”

“You want me to hold his hand.”It came out as a statement rather than a question.

“Basically.”

Emma rolled her eyes, not thrilled at the prospect of a road trip to Maine in the dead of winter.

“I trust you’ll knock this out in no time, Ms. Swan,” Gold ordered.“You always do.”

With that, Gold turned and strode to his door, opening it in a clear indication that Emma was dismissed.Emma took one final look at the photograph on Gold’s computer before picking up the news clipping and swiftly exiting the office.She had a lot of work to get done in the city before she left for Maine the next day.Settling behind her own desk, she began the business evaluations for the Inn immediately, mentions of ghost stories and haunted Inns pushed to the back of her mind while she focused. 

It wasn’t until everyone else in the office had left for the light and the midnight janitor was vacuuming somewhere on the floor that Emma looked up and realized how late it was.Settling back in her chair, she picked up the news article she’d thrown to the side earlier and read through it.It gave a brief history of the Inn and its previous owner, Cora Mills, before delving into the topic of the Inn’s tragic history.Briefly, the article mentioned someone named Regina Mills who had been killed on the edge of the property a few weeks prior to Christmas in 1920.After that, the Inn seemed to be struck with a number of unfortunate incidents including the death of Regina’s fiancé not long after her body had been found, a guest hanging himself in their room, and a kitchen fire that had kept the Inn closed for nearly two years.Once reopened, there were numerous reports of apparitions on the property, most commonly in the dining room, however, visits in guest rooms were not unheard of.Emma rolled her eyes and huffed out a chuckle as she read through one guests recounting of a “misty grey being” that had appeared at the foot of their bed. 

“Haunted my ass,” Emma grunted, throwing the article down on her desk as she stood and stretched.“Seems like a convenient way to get out of paying your bill.”

Emma shut down her computer, having finished most of what she needed to do from her office and gathered the necessary paperwork to take with her to Maine.Giving her office a once over to ensure she hadn’t forgotten anything essential, her eyes caught the article still sitting on her desk. She smirked and shook her head.If the Inn was in fact haunted, the ghosts were in for a rude awakening.Emma had a job to do and a promotion to secure and no campfire stories were going to stop her from achieving that.Shutting off her desk lamp, she closed her door, already eager to be done with her northern road trip but knowing it would be good to get away for a bit, even on business.

“Storybrooke, here I come,” she muttered as she walked out into the cold Boston night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Emma sighed with relief as she finally passed the “Welcome to Storybrooke” sign at the town limit.She’d been in the car for nearly seven hours as she’d fought traffic and then Mother Nature.As fat snowflakes fluttered across her windshield,Emma took in the startlingly small town in front of her.Without even realizing it, she’d left the winding Maine roads and ended up on what appeared to be the single main thoroughfare in Storybrooke.Emma followed the one cheery sign that pointed her in the direction of the Inn and within a minute, she was turning left onto Mifflin Street and the Inn was looming as grand as ever in front of her.While her rustic yellow Bug would make it through most any snow storm, Emma was relieved to arrive before the snow turned into a full blown nor’easter.The further north she’d come, the more completely the snow was covering everything in sight.

As she pulled up in front of the Inn, Emma saw another sedan parked in the front driveway.Before she could even shut her vehicle off, she saw a short bald man sprinting out the front doors of the Inn and towards the vehicle.

Emma quickly rolled down her window and called out to the man.“Leroy?Leroy!”

The man didn’t even miss a step as he fled the Inn.He threw a look her way and she was startled to see the clear fear that was etched into the lines on his face.The man was clearly scared out of his mind.Emma rolled her window up and clambered out of her car, trying to stop the man before he could leave.

“Wait!”

Despite being short, Leroy was surprisingly fast and was in his vehicle with the engine running before the word had even completely left her mouth. 

“What the…” Emma muttered as she rushed towards his vehicle.“Where are you-”

Emma skidded to a stop as she heard the car shift into gear and it came rocketing towards her.

“We have a meeting!” Emma hollered at Leroy as he sped past her, nearly running her down in the process as his car slid on the snow.

Emma watched in stunned disbelief as the car fishtailed around the corner and disappeared from sight, the tracks it had made already being covered by the increasing snow fall.

“Seriously?!”Emma huffed in annoyance as she threw her hands in the air.

Emma spent longer than she’d admit wistfully staring down the block after Leroy’s car, desperately praying he’d reappear.When she finally conceded that he wouldn’t be coming back, Emma sighed heavily before turning to the Inn.Her breath caught in her throat as she took in the absolutely gorgeous structure behind her.The Inn was even more breathtaking in person.The structure itself was completely white, nearly blending in with the falling snow.The Victorian architecture was apparent in the layout, windows, and pillars that lined the front porch of the Inn.

Emma’s boots crunched in the snow as she walked towards the entrance and angled for a better look at the property.The stained glass windows in the front doors caught what little light was coming through the clouds and Emma could immediately tell that they were original to the house.The paint was visibly worn and missing in some places but instead of making the property appear run down, it bolstered it’s charm.Despite all of that, a chill not associated with the weather ran up Emma’s spine as she climbed the steps to the porch and saw that Leroy had been in such a rush to leave that he’d left the front door wide open.Whether it had to do with the news article she’d read, the numerous guest accounts posted to the Inn’s Yelp page recounting paranormal experiences, or the blatant fear on Leroy’s face as he’d come blazing out of the place, Emma was unsettled as she eased open the front door the rest of the way and crossed the threshold.

The interior of the Inn appeared just as picturesque and charming as its exterior, the visible hallway and rooms decorated with furniture and trinkets from the Inn’s early days.Emma hesitated after walking in a few steps, that bone chilling cold still clinging to her despite the fact that she could feel heat blowing on her from a vent in the floor.

“Hello?”Emma’s voice was steadier than she would have thought, the word hanging in the air of the entryway.

Receiving no response, she turned to the first doorway on her right that seemed to open into a living area.Walking through it, she noticed what looked like several family photographs lined up on the mantle of the fireplace.Emma was immediately drawn to a black and white photograph of a dark haired woman, the bright splash of lipstick on her lips and the mischievous glint in her dark eyes surprisingly sharp given the time period the photograph had been taken in.Picking it up, Emma ran her fingers along the frame as she studied the photo.Judging on the wardrobe the woman was in, Emma guessed the photograph had been taken some time in the 1920s.The woman was standing in front of the Inn wearing a long wool dress covered by a slightly shorter dark colored, maybe deep purple, winter jacket.Her hat was the same color as her jacket and was ornately beaded with a narrow brim running all around it.Emma was so mesmerized by the photograph, she didn’t even hear the foot steps approaching behind her.

“Can I help you?”

Emma nearly fell over as she jolted in surprise and barely bit back a scream as she gasped.Turning, she saw an older woman staring at her in amusement. 

“Hi,” Emma managed to get out, still flustered at being caught off guard.“Sorry.The door was open.”

“It isn’t, actually,” the woman told her, stepping further into the room as she looked at Emma apologetically.“I’m in the middle of closing the Inn for the holidays.”

“Closing?” Emma’s brow furrowed as the woman continued to advance toward her, the woman’s gaze flicking to the photograph Emma was now clutching to her chest.“Isn’t it high season for a place like this?Why would you be closing now?”

Emma reluctantly let go of the photograph as the woman wordlessly pulled it from her grasp.She glanced down at it, a morose expression darkening her features before she seemed to gather herself and looked back at Emma.

“Tradition.”The woman smiled as she offered her hand.“I’m Widow Lucas, but everyone around here just calls me Granny.I take it you’re Ms. Swan.”

Emma fumbled with her gloves, awkwardly trying to free her hands of them to take Granny’s.“Emma, from Gold and Sons.I’m here for the property appraisal.”

“Yes.Leroy arrived early…left early too,” Granny explained with a frown. 

“I saw.”Emma was still sore about nearly becoming a hood ornament on Leroy’s fleeing vehicle.“What happened?”

“Eh, it was probably the ghost,” Granny guessed, her face and tone indicating that what she’d just said was completely normal.

“…the ghost,” Emma echoed, waiting for the punchline.

“Usually is when they leave like that.”Granny replied matter-of-factly.

Emma watched as Granny looked down at the picture in her hands, a far off look taking over her features for a moment.Emma took the opportunity to roll her eyes and simultaneously scan the room for any hidden cameras.Either Granny was a superb actor or she truly believed what she was telling Emma.Emma’s eyes snapped back to Granny as the older woman looked back up.

“Regina has never hurt anyone, though, every once in a while she does…assert herself,” Granny smirked, as though amused by the antics she was describing.

“Regina…mhm…”Emma began discreetly looking for her exits, the offered explanation only heightening the rolling in her gut.“You’re on a first name basis with a ghost?”

“Well, when you’ve worked here as long as I have.”Granny chuckled at Emma’s obliviousness.

Emma’s gaze nervously flicked to the door behind Granny, her mind already calculating the likelihood of getting out of the house before Granny could react.She had the woman in age, but though she was older, Granny looked like she could more than hold her own.Before Emma could make her move, however, Granny was suddenly stepping past her and headed towards the mantle.Emma took the opportunity to flip their positions and sidle closer to the door. 

“Regina Henrietta Mills.She once owned this Inn many years ago.”Granny gently placed the photograph back in its place on the mantle and turned back to face Emma.“This Inn is of utmost importance to her.”

Emma hummed in nervous agreement, her mind screaming at her to run, to run and get out while she could.The other less animalistic portion of her mind, however, calmly reminded her that if she didn’t close this property, she could kiss the promotion to partner goodbye.

“Now, I’m sorry your trip has been a waste of time,”Granny lamented as she moved past Emma and towards the front door.

Startled, Emma hastily turned around to stop Granny.“Oh, no. I’m not done.I just got here!There has to be some appraiser somewhere who isn’t going to let a silly ghost story scare them off.” 

Just as Emma finished speaking, there was a muffled but definitive thump from somewhere upstairs.Emma paused and looked up, her thoughts momentarily side tracked.

“Sorry, _Regina_ ,” Emma called, not even bothering to conceal the sarcasm in her voice.

“And…where will you stay until then?”Granny looked just the slightest bit perturbed that Emma was holding her up.

“Uh, well…this is an Inn so I kind of figured I would stay here,” Emma declared.

“Impossible,” was Granny’s immediate response in a tone that brokered no argument.“As I said, we’re closed until December 26th.The staff is already gone and I’ll be leaving within the hour.”

“Well, as executor of the estate, I have a set of keys so it’s _not_ impossible,” Emma challenged, never one to back down from a fight.

Granny hesitated, clearly considering Emma’s words. 

“Inadvisable,” she amended.

“Because of the ghost?” Emma replied dubiously.“I don’t scare easy.”

“I’ll be leaving soon,”Granny reminded her.“You _will_ be alone.”

Emma laughed her concern off.“I’m a big girl, Ms. Lucas.Besides, it’s only for one night and I’ll lock up the place when I leave.”

Granny hesitated, clearly torn between staying or going.Picking up on her indecision, Emma couldn’t resist pushing the older woman just a bit further.

“But you know what?  You’re welcome to stay here with me if that would make _you_ feel better,” Emma offered sweetly, sarcasm dripping from every word.

“Not remotely,” Granny replied, all traces of uncertainty instantly gone from her features.“I’ll be gone- as I always am- by December 13th.”

With that, Granny turned and began making her way out of the living area once more.Perplexed, Emma followed closely behind.

“Uh, why December 13th?”

Granny turned back and gave Emma a secretive smirk.  “Tradition.”

With that, Granny left Emma standing no less confused in the living area.Emma turned and walked back to the mantle, her gaze immediately gravitating towards the photograph of Regina once more.She sighed as she picked it back up, her hands gently caressing the antique frame.

“What have I gotten myself into,” she mumbled as Regina stared back at her from the frame.

  **XXX**

 Emma stood at the window of her chosen room no less than an hour later and watched as Granny loaded her final bag into the trunk of her SUV.Emma didn’t miss the reluctance on her face as she turned for one final look at Emma.Shaking her head slightly, she got into her SUV and drove off in a much slower pace compared to Leroy’s earlier breakneck pace.Emma turned and fished her cellphone out of the jacket she’d discarded earlier and pulled Gold’s contact information up.Dialing, she half hoped he wouldn’t pick up.The wish was short lived however, when Emma heard the distinct click of the line being picked up on the other end.

“Emma dear, how are you settling in?”

Emma glanced around her room, the furniture simple but elegant.“I have the whole place to myself,” she began.“Your appraiser was a bust.”

“You’re kidding!” Gold exclaimed, the irritation carrying over the line.

“He was sprinting to his car when I got here,” Emma revealed as she left her room and began walking downstairs. 

“So what’s your plan now?” Gold queried as the distinct noise of paper being shuffled carried over the line.

“Well, when I get home to Boston, I’ll hire one of the appraisers we’ve used before so they’re not caught up in the myth of this place.”Emma paused at the bottom of the stairs, a framed news article and the same picture of Regina from earlier catching her eye as it hung on the wall.

“Will you be staying there tonight?”The shuffling of paper was reaching a crescendo.“Have you seen anything spooky yet?”

Emma moved closer to the hanging article, her curiosity getting the better of her but rolled her eyes at the question.“Don’t start.”

“I almost wish I was a fly tonight so I could get the update.”Mercifully, Gold stopped shuffling whatever paperwork he’d been handling and the line went silent for a moment.“If you survive.”

Emma smirked and moved on from the article without reading it.She walked over to the alarm pad hanging by the front door and input the code to arm the alarm.

“You’ll get the update when you get back from the Bahamas,” she told him as the system confirmed she’d successfully turned the alarm on.“And I can guarantee you there won’t be any ghosts.”

Emma hung the phone up, the ludicrous idea of the Inn being haunted still making her smile.She glanced at the photo of Regina as she walked past to the kitchen, unable to simply walk past and not acknowledge it.Making herself a quick snack and pouring a couple fingers of the whiskey she’d brought into a glass, Emma made her way back upstairs to shower and wind down for the night.Once she’d taken a shower hot enough to turn her skin pink and wash away the grunginess that hours of travel produced, she settled into bed with the novel she was currently in the middle of.Despite not having any luck in her own life, Emma was a closet sucker for ridiculous romance novels.

She was just nodding off, still sitting up in bed with the book open in her lap, when the chiming of the wind up clock in her room startled her out of her sleep.She threw a dark look at the clock, noting that it was chiming because it was midnight exactly.Sighing, Emma chalked up the fact that she was more jumpy than usual to her unfamiliar surroundings rather than ghost stories and set her book aside.She settled down beneath the thick covers and switched her light off. 

Before sleep could fully claim her, however, she suddenly heard the squeak of door hinges from somewhere downstairs followed by the patterned beeping of the alarm code pad as though someone was disarming it.Emma froze, not even daring to breathe as her ears strained to listen for anything else.The house was dreadfully silent for a full thirty seconds before Emma heard footsteps walking delicately around downstairs.Sitting up, Emma switched her light back on and fumbled around on the night stand for her phone where she’d left it plugged in to charge.She winced when it fell off the nightstand and struck the wood floor, the sound of the impact echoing like a gunshot. 

“Fuck,” she muttered as she scrambled to recover it.

She had just picked it up and started dialing 9-1-1 when her bedroom door swung open violently and banged off the wall behind it.Emma jumped and picked up her metal nail file that had been sitting next to her phone on the night stand.Her heart was beating out of her chest and her breaths were coming faster as she stared wide eyed at the open door way.Not hearing or seeing anything, Emma shakily pushed herself out of her bed, still wielding the file like a knife in her right hand while keeping her phone in her left.She’d be damned if some psycho killed her in her own bed.

Making her way out of the room, Emma slowly crept towards the stairs.Peering over the bannister, she didn’t see anyone below and she could no longer hear footsteps.Emma walked down the stairs as her breathing grew louder with each step.She made sure to keep her thumb hovering over the “call” button on her phone as she reached the bottom of the stairs.Still not seeing anyone, Emma turned and began walking back towards the kitchen.  She had not even made it five steps when an anger filled voice rang out in the silence.

“You’re trespassing.”

Emma whirled, and in the process, knocked into the bookshelf that lined the wall.As her back struck it, one of the heavy stone knickknacks seated atop it toppled off and fell.Emma didn’t even have time to process that it was falling towards her before it slammed into her head and stars were dancing across her vision.Her knees buckled and she crumpled to the floor.Before her head could strike the ground, however, strong arms encircled her and stalled her fall.As darkness clouded her vision, Emma just barely made out the silhouetted shape of a woman hovering above her.She blinked to try and clear her vision, but it was no use and her body went limp and unconsciousness took over.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All grammar/spelling mistakes are my own. I am editing less in favor of posting these chapters. Merry Christmas Eve.
> 
> Come find me on tumblr at Phoenix_Rises_Again.

**Chapter Three**

Emma squinted at the bright light filtering in through the large window across the room.Taking a few deep breaths, Emma forced herself to fully open her eyes and was startled to find that she was lying on a couch in the living area.Sitting up, her brow furrowed when the multi-colored blanket that had apparently been covering her pooled at her waist.Her neck ached from the angle it had been bent at on the couch but that was quickly over taken by a pounding at the top of her skull. 

Raising a hand with a groan, Emma massaged the kink out of her neck and looked around, her confusion only growing when she couldn’t remember how she’d gotten to the couch and why she wasn’t in bed.She recoiled and let out a hiss as her fingers brushed over the point of pain on her head.Glancing down, she noticed for the first time that there was dried blood on her pajama top.Risking another explosion of pain, she gently ran her hands over the same area on her head, freezing when her fingers bumped over stitches.Just as her panic was beginning to mount, she heard piano music floating in from somewhere in the house.Emma knew she should be wary of someone else being in the house, but she figured if they’d left her alone while she was unconscious it was unlikely they were there to harm her.Besides that, her curiosity about exactly what had happened last night was nagging at her since the details were still muddled.

Stumbling a little as she rose, Emma steadied herself on the arm of the couch before following the music.She recognized the melody of “12 Days of Christmas” after a minute, her brain still sluggish and her head pounding even more now that she’d stood up.Making her way into the dining room, she rounded a corner and was startled to see a dark haired woman sitting at the piano Emma hadn’t noticed under the stairs, her back to Emma.The woman didn’t seem to notice Emma’s presence and continued to play so Emma took a moment to admire her glossy hair that had been intricately braided and wrapped into a chignon at the base of her neck.It was a style Emma hadn’t seen many women wear anymore, let alone pull off as elegantly as the one before her.A few more notes rang out before the woman seemed to realize Emma was behind her.Playing a few final chords as she turned to the side, the song abruptly ending as the woman caught sight of Emma staring.

“How’s the head?”Her voice was husky in a way that reminded Emma of cabaret or speak easy singers from the twentieth century.

“Sore,” Emma replied, wincing as she ran a hand over the stitches once more. 

“Understandable,” the woman nodded as she turned to more fully face Emma.

Emma froze, her eyes going wide as she took in the woman’s features.She was without a doubt the most beautiful woman Emma had ever seen.Her pale skin was accentuated by her dark hair and deep brown eyes were staring at her with a glint of amusement shining in them.A violent splash of red in the form of lipstick covered her full lips, which were currently quirked upwards in a smirk.Her long-sleeved dress reached below her knees and was cut to accentuate each and every curve- of which the woman had plenty- and was a deep shade of purple.Emma felt a blush creeping into her cheeks as her eyes followed the lines of the flattering outfit.Emma could tell it had been handmade and was of high quality, even from where she was standing.The woman seemed incredibly familiar but Emma couldn’t seem to place her.She suspected it had something to do with the elephants currently marching across the top of her skull.

“Well, you appear, thankfully, no worse off,” the woman observed her eyes burning a hole through Emma as she studied her.

Emma felt a blush spreading on her cheeks at the woman’s attention and glanced down at her feet.“Are you…” Emma trailed off, still flustered at the sudden appearance of the woman and the pounding in her head.“Did you stitch my head up?”

The woman smirked again, her gaze flicking up to Emma’s head.“Should I have just allowed you to bleed all over everything?”

“Well, no, I suppose not,” Emma placed her hands in the pockets of her hoody to hide their nervous fidgeting, the woman’s unwavering gaze making her uncomfortable in a way that wasn’t entirely unwelcome.“Thank-you.”

The woman waved a hand dismissively.“Think nothing of it.It was quite simple and there will be no lasting effects…which means you can leave.”

At Emma’s indignant look, the smirk disappeared and a dangerous and dark look clouded the woman’s features.

“You should leave, at once.”The woman’s tone had a warning edge to it that hadn’t been present before and Emma was suddenly less sure that the woman meant her no harm.

Refusing to back down, Emma pulled her hands out of her pockets and balled her fists up at her sides.Taking a step towards the woman, anger flashed across her face at the abrupt dismissal.

“I’m not leaving,” Emma snapped as she took another step forward.“You’re the trespasser!”  
  
The woman chuckled quietly to herself before she pushed herself to her feet.Sliding out from between the piano and the bench, she turned and fully faced Emma for the first time.While Emma was just slightly taller than the other woman, the expression on her face and the way in which she carried herself made Emma feel immeasurably smaller than her.  
  
“A woman can not trespass on her own property,” the woman calmly stated, a smug look creeping onto her features.

“This Inn belongs to the Mills trust, which means you should leave before I call the sheriff,” Emma threatened.

Annoyance flickered across the other woman’s face before determination settled in her features and she was swiftly striding towards Emma.Emma had no time to react as the woman crossed the space in the blink of an eye and was bending down and throwing Emma over her shoulder without even seeming to expend any effort. 

“Hey!” Emma cried out in surprise as she suddenly found herself hanging upside down over the woman’s shoulder.

Without a word, the woman carried her the short distance to the front door and they were outside on the porch before Emma could protest further. 

“Let me down!” Emma demanded, the pounding in her head had amplified tenfold at her new position.The woman placed her down on the porch, turning and stalking back into the Inn.Emma smoothed down her hoody as it had ridden up from the woman handling she’d just experienced.She turned and stomped back towards the door but just as she reached the threshold, the woman slammed it shut in her face and made a show of locking it.Before Emma could say a word, the woman disappeared momentarily before reappearing with the heavy blanket that had been covering Emma while she’d slept on the couch.Opening the door, the woman thrust it at her before closing and locking the door once more.

Emma huffed in annoyance but wrapped herself up in the blanket nonetheless.Snow was beginning to fall again and she estimated it had to be far below freezing.Fishing her phone out of her hoody, her fingers shook as she dialed 9-1-1.Trying to explain what had happened to the local sheriff left Emma feeling even worse as she paced back and forth on the porch waiting for him to arrive.When the beat up cruiser finally pulled up in front of the Inn ten minutes later, Emma breathed a sigh of relief.She’d started shivering about five minutes prior and she was beginning to lose feeling in her feet.  
  
“Thanks for coming, Sheriff Humbert,” Emma called from her spot on the porch as the man climbed out of the cruiser.

The man looked up at her, an amused smile on his lips as he took in the fact that she had no shoes on and was wrapped in a blanket. 

“No problem,” he replied as he dug a large ring of keys out of his pocket.“Let’s get you out of this cold and you can tell me more about what happened.”

The chattering of Emma’s teeth was the only response he received and he set to work finding the right key out of the dozens on his ring.Once he’d located it, he swung the door wide and allowed Emma to enter first.She shuffled past him and walked directly to the heating vent in the floor.She closed her eyes and a moan passed her lips before she could stop it as the heat funneled up through the blanket cocoon she’d created and washed over her.Sheriff Humbert cracked a smile at her as he eased the door closed.

“So she was here when you got up?”Emma opened her eyes and looked at Sheriff Humbert, still unwilling to move from the blessedly warm spot over the vent.

“Yeah, but I think she somehow got in last night because I saw someone right before I was knocked out,” Emma answered as she finally allowed the blanket to hang loosely off her shoulders.

“She hit you?”Sheriff Humbert’s expression became completely serious at her words, his eyes beginning to look for injuries.

“Oh, no.No,” Emma quickly reassured him as her hand unconsciously moved to where the stitches were hiding under her hair.“A vase or something fell on my head.”

Sheriff Humbert looked at her like she was insane before a chuckle escaped him.Emma nervously laughed as well, knowing how she must sound to him.

“You okay?” He asked, truly concerned despite her ludicrous story.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she nodded.“She stitched me up but I’ll really feel better once she’s out of here.”

If Sheriff Humbert thought she was crazy before, now he was looking at her like she had five heads.“She stitched you up?”

“Uh…Yes?”Hearing herself say it out loud had Emma thinking she might just be crazy too.

“Ok…well, uh, why don’t you stay down here and I’ll go have a look around,” he offered still looking at her like she was nuts.

“Thanks, Sheriff Humbert,” Emma nodded, relieved.

“Graham.Most people here call me Graham,” he told her before he began ascending the stairs to the second floor.  
  
Emma bit her lip as she listened to Graham moving around upstairs.After ten minutes, she realized she was sweating and threw the blanket back on the couch in the living area.She heard a door close upstairs and returned to the foyer just in time to see Graham making his way back down the stairs.He shook his head with a resigned look and Emma’s brow furrowed.

“She was here, I swear,” she insisted.

“She was probably some drifter who came in out of the cold and high-tailed it out back when she saw me,” Graham guessed.“I mean, I’ll check around the area, though.”  
  
As Graham moved to pass her and head out the door, Emma knew he didn’t believe her.“Well, she was dressed awfully nice for a drifter,” she tried.“She was wearing a beautiful dress.”

Graham paused and considered her.“Well, some do.”

Emma rolled her eyes at that. “In the middle of winter?”

“Possibly,” Graham remarked.“You might want to try using your alarm system.”

“Wh- I did!” Emma protested.“I set it last night…I think.”

Graham shot her a pointed look and Emma felt herself flush.She sighed as he nodded his goodbye and let himself out.It was hard to do decide whose antics had left her more frustrated, the mystery woman or the Sheriff’s.Emma locked the door behind Graham and made sure she set the alarm.Satisfied, she climbed the stairs and went back into her room, being sure to close and lock the door behind her.She went in the bathroom to get herself ready for the day, closing and locking that door behind her as well.She told herself she wasn’t being paranoid, she was just trying to contain heat in the drafty house.

**XXX**

Emma had finally warmed up completely and relaxed under the spray of hot water from the shower.   Finishing up her morning routine by running a quick brush through her loose blonde curls, Emma had nearly forgotten about why she’d locked herself in her bathroom when she was the only person in the Inn.  Unlocking the door and pushing it open, she stumbled back with a gasp when her eyes fell on the woman standing at the end of her bed.  
****

“This is my Inn,” the woman declared, anger clear in her tone.Her features softened slightly and that spark of amusement entered her brown eyes again.She held up her hand to show Emma a ring not unlike the Sheriff’s with a bunch of keys dangling from it.“I have all the keys.”

Emma stared wide-eyed at the woman, seemingly frozen to the spot.When the woman realized she wasn’t going to get a response, she lowered her hand and folded her hands together in front of her.  
  
“I have no wish to harm you,” the woman assured Emma.“I merely want my solitude, which requires your departure.”

Rather than respond, Emma ran the several steps to the night stand and snatched her phone from it before running back into the bathroom and locking herself inside once more.Breathing hard, she quickly dialed Graham’s cell phone number that he’d given her earlier.  
  
“Miss Swan, what can I do for you?” Graham sounded amused.

“She’s back!” she yell whispered into the phone.“She’s in my room right now!”

“Can you get away from her?” All traces of amusement vanished and Emma heard a siren wail in the background.

“I’ve locked myself in my bathroom for now.She hasn’t tried to get in but she said she has all the keys to the place,” Emma advised him, her voice stronger than she was feeling.

“I’ll be there shortly,” Graham told her before the line went dead.

Approximately five minutes later, Emma heard footsteps on the other side of the bathroom door.The jangle of keys made her heart beat quicken and her breathing increase.She bent closer to the door, straining to hear if it was the woman coming back to toss her from the Inn again.As a key scratched in the lock, Emma backed away from the door as much as the cramped space allowed and looked around desperately for anything she could use as a weapon.Settling on the toilet brush as her only option, Emma resigned herself to her fate as the door swung open.Emma dropped the toilet brush to the floor upon seeing Graham on the other side, the same confused look on his face as an hour ago.He escorted her downstairs where she began pacing.

“I activated the alarm and it didn’t go off,” she began hotly, frustrated at the look on his face.“That means she was still in here when you left.”  
  
“Well, I searched everywhere again,” Graham shrugged, not looking incredibly apologetic.

“You must have missed something then,” Emma insisted.

Grahams eyes narrowed as he looked down at her.“How’s your head?”

“It’s fine,” Emma huffed in frustration.“Look, I’m not hallucinating.There was a woman here.”

“Well, she’s not here now.”

“Unless you missed her…again.”

Silence fell over the two and Graham leaned in towards her.“Or she’s a ghost,” he said in a low tone.

Emma sighed in frustration and rolled her eyes as Graham chuckled to himself.He brushed past her and made his way to the front doors for the second time that day.He hesitated as he reached them, seeming to finally feel slightly bad for poking fun at her.Turning around, he took in Emma’s angry stance as she stood with her back still to him.

“Ms. Swan,” he tried, not surprised at the frustrated look on her face when she turned to look at him.“Would you like me to stay here until you leave?”

His words had the opposite effect he was intending when Emma’s face flushed with anger and she crossed her arms in front of her.“No, that won’t be necessary,” she ground out.  
  
Emma took a few steps towards him, her arms uncurling and waving at her sides.“Look, I’m not making this up, Sheriff.That woman was here.”  
  
“I made sure all the windows and doors are locked now,”Graham advised her, annoyance crossing his features.“Just don’t forget to set the alarm after I leave.”

Emma shook her head as Graham let himself out.She walked up and locked the door behind him, watching as he got into his car.Just as he pulled out of the driveway, Emma heard the distinct electronic beeping of the alarm pad behind her.When she spun around, she found the woman standing at the pad punching numbers into it.  
  
“I also know the alarm code,” the woman bragged as the alarm went from armed to disarmed. 

Closer than they’d ever been previously, Emma noticed a scar above the woman’s right lip and briefly wondered what had caused it.Shaking her head, she found that she wasn’t afraid of the woman so much as she was annoyed.  
  
“Are you going to keep disappearing and reappearing like this?” Emma demanded.

“Are you going to keep calling the sheriff?”The woman queried, genuine curiosity on her features.“I’m pretty sure he thinks it’s all in your head.”

Having hit the nail on the head, Emma paled and worked to keep her features neutral but she couldn’t help the desperation the bled through in her next questions.“Is it?Are you?”

The woman smirked as though she were entertained.“You tell me.It’s your head”

Emma swallowed and considered for a moment.She’d never had hallucinations before and she was certain she’d seen the woman before she’d sustained her head wound.She was pretty sure she didn’t have any mental illness’ but she couldn’t vouch for her family’s history since she didn’t have a family.Maybe sensing Emma’s internal struggle, the woman relaxed her stance and leaned against the door jam to the living area.Emma was immediately put at ease by the change in body language.

“I think you’re real,” Emma revealed.

“But what is real?” With that, the woman pushed herself off the wall and walked down the hall.

Just like that, Emma was back to being completely uncertain and she groaned in frustration.Following the woman around the corner, Emma was startled when she didn’t see the woman in front of her.She looked around in confusion for a moment before realization dawned that the woman had mysteriously vanished once again.

“Stop it!” she yelled in frustration, her voice echoing in the empty house.  
  
She stomped back towards the front of the house, pulling up short as her eyes found the framed photograph and news article on the wall near the stairs.Her stomach dropped as she stared at it, her mouth moving but her voice not working.The woman in the photograph bore an uncanny resemblance to the one that she had just been arguing with.For the first time, her eyes swept to the headline of the article. _Regina Mills missing; feared dead_ was splashed across the top of the article in large bold print.

“Impossible,” Emma muttered, finally finding her voice.

“Unfortunately, it isn’t,” came the unexpected response to her right. 

Emma jumped as her hand flew to her chest.Her heart was beating erratically once more and Emma swore this town was going to be the death of her.Her eyes landed on Granny, who was standing in the doorway to the kitchen as she removed her gloves.There was a knowing look on the older woman’s face as she watched Emma try and calm herself down.

“Come,” Granny beckoned with a friendly wave as she gestured to the living area.“Let me tell you all about it.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Again: I do not own any of the characters, most of the plot, and some of the dialogue. I definitely own all of the grammar and spelling errors. My brain has also been asleep for the past hour so who could really say what's going on in this chapter.

**Chapter Four**

“You knew this would happen when I said I was staying here, didn’t you?”  Emma accused Granny as she followed her into the living area.  
****

“I knew it might,” Granny admitted as she shed her jacket.“Or, I thought you might leave.”

“She wants me to leave,” Emma told her.  
  
“Then you should,” Granny advised with a shrug.

Emma chuckled humorlessly.“What would I tell my boss? ‘Strange things are afoot at Storybrooke Inn and I couldn’t get it appraised?’I have a promotion riding on this, you know.”

Emma had gotten progressively closer to Granny with each word, her anger mounting as well now that she was standing within a foot of the woman who had known all along that she’d likely be tormented if she stayed at the Inn.Rather than look apologetic, however, Granny seemed all the more amused as Emma drew nearer.To say that ticked off Emma even more was an understatement.Just as she was about to lay into the other woman for making her question her own sanity, a voice rang out behind her causing her to jump and gasp yet again.  
  
“Storybrooke Inn should not be sold,” the woman who had been tormenting Emma for the last 24 hours argued emphatically as she walked past them and into the kitchen.She returned a moment later with a knife and an apple and began systematically peeling it. Emma stared at her, struck by how completely she looked like the woman in the photo, right down to the scar above her lip.If Granny wanted to have her believe that the woman was Regina Mills, then fine, two could play at that game.  
  
“You need to leave.Immediately.”

“Ok, can we dial down on the whole ‘startling Emma’ thing you two have going on?I have a potential head injury here,” Emma growled as her fingers ran over her stitches once more and her heart rate returned to normal.Turning back to Granny, she purposefully ignored Regina.“Explain to me again how she’s a ghost?She doesn’t look like a ghost.”

Granny didn’t even have a chance to answer before Emma turned back to Regina and grabbed her wrist.The effect was immediate.Regina froze, her eyes snapping to where Emma had her hand around her wrist and was shaking it at Granny as she tried to make her point.Emma seemed completely oblivious to the effect she had on Regina, but Granny didn’t miss the the dark haired woman’s quick intake of breath or the myriad of emotions that flickered across her face at the contact.

“See?You can’t touch ghosts,” Emma continued, satisfied that at least she wasn’t _that_ crazy.  
  
Emma released Regina’s wrist with a “told you” look thrown at Granny, again missing the effect that she had on the other woman.Granny watched as Regina scrambled to reign her emotions in before the blonde took notice of them.As a diversion, Regina looked at Granny instead.

“So.We’re telling her then?” Regina asked, surprised.

“Seems prudent,” Granny replied with a resigned frown.  
  
“Except that I wouldn’t believe you for a second,” Emma pointed out.

“And you’re an expert on the supernatural?” Regina asked, sarcasm dripping from every word.

Emma turned and smirked at her.“Just what I’ve seen in the movies.”  
  
“Oh, yes!The cinema,” Regina lauded sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

“Mhm,” Emma replied tightly as she glared at the other woman.  
  
“Bit of advice,” Regina offered as she ate a piece of her apple, “There’s more to life, and the afterlife, than one can find in the realm of flickering lights and pipe organ music.”  
  
Turning back to Granny, Emma smiled tightly at her.“Does she always talk like that?”

Rather than answer her question, and looking more than a little annoyed at their bickering, Granny launched into her promised explanation.“At that moment, Regina is not a ghost.”  
  
“Hmm, obviously,” Emma deadpanned.

“However,” Granny carried on over Emma, “when the clock strikes midnight on December 24th, she will be, yet again.”  
  
“How does that even work?” Emma asked, her brow furrowed in confusion and disbelief.  
  
“A curse.”Regina’s voice was flat but implied that Emma should have reached that conclusion on her own.  
  
“A curse?”Emma spun back to face Regina once again, her glare back in place.“You just said ‘a curse’ out loud and actually meant it.”  
  
“How else would you explain this?” Regina demanded, exasperated.  
  
Granny raised her eyebrows in question when Emma looked at her for something more than ‘a curse’ but scoffed when none was provided.“Right now, I’m leaning towards cerebral edema but I am _really_ hoping I’m wrong on that.”Turning back to face Regina once more, Emma raised her hands in the universal symbol for surrender.“Okay, look.I’m not going to deny that there is a very, very strong resemblance between you and that dead chick in that picture out there in the hall.”

Regina paused, a piece of apple halfway to her mouth as she stopped to gauge Emma.A mixed look of curiosity, frustration, and what Emma thought might have been hope passed over her features before she threw her walls back up and her expression was once again blank.Despite that, Emma plowed on.  
  
“But there has to be some other explanation besides curses and ghosts,” Emma reasoned.“There’s just no such thing.”  
  
Emma turned back to Granny to find a wide and knowing smile on her face.Immediately, Emma knew she didn’t like the looks of it.Behind Emma, Regina set down the remainder of her apple and the knife she’d been using to carve it up and held out her hand.  
  
“I’ll prove it to you,” she promised.  
  
Emma turned around ready to keep arguing but paused when she saw the proffered hand and the earnest look on Regina’s face.She looked back at Granny, seeking reassurance and when Granny nodded, Emma reluctantly placed her hand in Regina’s.It was warm, much warmer than Emma had expected, and skin was silky smooth despite the time of year and the weather.Emma barely restrained herself from brushing the back of it with her thumb.She was startled when Regina pulled her from the living area towards the front doors and out onto the porch, the cold air immediately invading her for the second time that day.Emma chose to focus on the warmth radiating from their joined hands as Regina wordlessly led her down the porch steps and around the side of the house.

Emma clutched her sweater more tightly around her as they proceeded into what looked like a garden during the spring and summer.Foot high snow was pilled around them as they walked down the narrow cleared path and came upon freestanding columns that marked the edge of the property.Just prior to them, Regina came to a sudden stop and Emma nearly barreled into her.Regina turned, being sure to keep their hands joined, and looked at Emma.The intensity burning in her eyes told  
Emma just how important it was to her that Emma believe her.  
  
“What?” Emma suddenly asked, the silence and Regina’s stare getting the better of her.“I don’t get it.”

Regina hesitated for only a moment longer, fear and uncertainty crossing her features before she was suddenly taking a step back towards the pillars and the property line.As her body crossed the line, she instantly disappeared, her hand and warmth disappearing from Emma and leaving the blonde off balance.Unable to right herself at Regina’s sudden disappearance, Emma fell back into the snow with a grunt.She scrambled to her feet as she searched for any trap door or wires that would explain Regina’s sudden disappearance.Hesitantly, she reached her hand over the line, testing to see if it too would disappear.When it didn’t she slowly crossed the line herself, confused when nothing happened.Understanding dawned on her and she turned to sprint back to the house.  
  
As she burst through the front doors, she stopped short when she saw Regina sitting on the stairs digging into her apple once more.  
  
“Now do you believe me?” Regina questioned, an elegant eyebrow raised.  
  
“Hell yeah,” Emma responded excitedly.“But if you think I’m leaving now, you really are nuts.”  
  
Regina sighed as a disgruntled look took over her features.It seemed as though her attempts to scare Emma off had failed miserably.

**XXX**

Hours later, Regina was sitting by herself in the dining room happily digging into a whole rotisserie chicken, grilled cheese, lasagna, and an apple turnover.  Emma and Granny were leaning on the doorway to the dining room, watching as Regina happily chewed her food.  Emma watched in fascination as the mountain of food slowly diminished to nothing in front of their very eyes.  
****

“She sure does eat a lot for a ghost,” she observed.  
  
“She says it’s more about the sensation,” Granny explained.When Emma turned to her, confusion clear on her face, Granny elaborated.“She says that all of her senses are heightened upon her return.”  
  
“Yeah, uh, chicken?”Emma asked as she stepped toward Regina.“I think if I came back from the dead, my first meal would not be a full blown rotisserie chicken.The grilled cheese, however, is a fabulous choice.”

Regina clenched her jaw and shook her head.“I can hear you."  
  
“Maybe a chicken vindaloo,” Emma murmured to herself as she pondered what she’d really crave in Regina’s situation.“Hey, did they have chicken vindaloo when you were…alive?”

Emma sprang back as Regina suddenly stood and wordlessly carried her tray of food to the other end of the table as far away from Emma and Granny as she could get.Her anger was clear in every deliberate stomp.  
  
“Is she always this cranky when she comes back?”Emma questioned Granny, her hands on her hips.  
  
“I wouldn’t know,” Granny shrugged.“Other than our first encounter years ago, our interactions are rare and brief.”  
  
“Yeah,” Emma agreed.“She doesn’t seem chatty.”  
  
“I can still hear you,” Regina barked around a mouthful of food.

Emma and Granny looked at each other and then Granny pointed outside.  
  
“Yeah,” Emma agreed immediately as both of them grabbed their jackets and proceeded outside.  
  
Once outside, they began walking down the block, really the only portion of the area that had been cleared of enough snow to allow them to do so.  
  
“I’m no expert on curses, but this one seems a little weird,” Emma mused out loud.“She’s a ghost except for two weeks?Why?Did she insult a witch?”  
  
Granny chuckled.“There are no witches.”  
  
“Oh right,” Emma conceded, “Because _that_ would be crazy.”  
  
“Regina doesn’t know the reason behind her…situation,” Granny clarified.“Only that she came back 96 years ago for twelve days and has done the same each year ever since.”  
  
“And she can’t leave the Inn?”Emma asked, genuinely curious.

“She’s restricted by the Inn’s property line,” Granny patiently explained.  
  
“Exactly, there’s too many rules for this to just be random,” Emma challenged.“There has to be a purpose behind it.”  
  
“Agreed,” Granny confessed.“But I don’t have enough information and Regina isn’t very forthcoming.”  
  
Emma vehemently nodded in agreement.“That much has been made abundantly clear,” Emma muttered.“What I don’t understand is why not.Doesn’t she want to find out?”

Granny gave her a shrug and shook her head.“Again, she isn’t particularly talkative when she’s here.Sometimes it almost feels like she has self-imposed a punishment for some reason”  
  
Emma seemed to mull that over as she stomped her feet to keep them warm.“Well, if it were me, I’d be spending all of my free time here researching until I’d figured out why this was happening to me.Maybe then I could…break the curse.” 

“If we can break the curse, that would allow Regina to move on,” Emma mused as realization dawned on her.“And if we get Regina to move on, then that means no more scaring the appraisers I hire!”  
  
Granny watched the other woman in silence as excitement lit up her features at the prospect of getting rid of Regina.  
  
“If I can get an appraiser in, then that means I’ll still be on track to get the Inn sold by the end of the year.”Emma was practically vibrating she was so exhilarated.  
  
“That also means I’ll finally make partner.”

Emma ignored the twinge in her gut at the thought of being rid of Regina permanently.There was no reason she shouldn’t want the woman to move on.She was rude, argumentative, and absolutely the most irritating person Emma had ever dealt with- and that included the various foster homes she’d shuffled through, her marks when she was a bail bonds person, and the uppity rich type A’s she dealt with as a lawyer. _Yet despite all that, she still cared enough to stitch you up and ensure you were warm_ , her brain suddenly reminded her. _She also threw my ass out on the porch without shoes or a jacket_ , Emma silently argued back. _Time for her to see the light_.Looking up, she realized that Granny was staring at her with an eyebrow raised, regarding her with concern.  
  
“Think she’ll go for it?” Emma asked her eagerly, a wide smile on her face for the first time since arriving in Storybrooke.

“I think the only way to know for sure is to ask,” Granny replied as she gestured for Emma to start back on the path to the house.

 

**XXX**

“No.”  
****

Emma groaned in frustration at Regina, the other woman not even bothering to look up from the book she was reading. “Why?”  
  
“Because there’s no point,” Regina patiently explained, eyes still on her book.“And I want you out of here. _Both_ of you.”  
  
“At least listen,” Emma pleaded as she stepped into Regina’s space so the other woman had no choice but to look up.  
  
“No!”Regina glared angrily up at Emma, the book snapping closed in her hands.“I have a finite period of time here and I’m not willing to waste it on theories or hunches.”  
  
Switching tactics, Emma brought her hands to her hips.“Have you ever tried to find out why you’re like this?” she challenged.  
  
“More times than you can count,” Regina replied as she opened her book and resumed reading.  
  
“With anyone’s help?” Emma pressed, noting the flicker of hesitation as well as annoyance dance across Regina’s features.  
  
“Yes, my cousin, Mal,” Regina barked, clearly at the end of her patience.“She was the proprietor of the Inn when I first returned.We made no progress.”  
  
“Well that was a long time ago,” Emma pointed out as she began to pace in front of Regina.“Come on!We have a chance to figure out how you died and see if that is what has kept you trapped here.”  
  
Regina sighed heavily and snapped her book shut once more.She removed the reading glasses she was wearing and pinched the bridge of her nose before she peered up at Emma.“Then what?”  
  
“Then…I think you’ll move on,” Emma mumbled, suddenly looking anywhere but at Regina. “Cross over, go into the light, whatever.”  
  
Regina closed her eyes and seemed to take a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself.“You think?” she finally asked flatly.  
  
“I don’t know!How could I possibly know?But trying is in both our interests,” Emma argued.“Look, I need to get this Inn evaluated and having you here makes that impossible.Don’t you want to move on?”  
  
At that, Regina was silent as her jaw clenched.Now she was the one refusing to look at Emma as she worked to keep her expression neutral.“More than you know,” she murmured, a longing look passing over her features before it was swept behind her walls.

  
**XXX**

Having finally convinced Regina to at least have a conversation about the possibility of breaking the curse, Emma was now pacing back and forth behind the couch in the living room while Regina sat upon it, completely relaxed.The dim clattering of china could be heard from the kitchen as Granny fixed them all a hot cup of tea.Emma’s mind was racing a thousand miles a minute and she found the relative silence was just compounding her anxiety.  
  
“How can you be so calm about this?” Emma finally blurted out.  
  
“Well that lasted all of a minute,” Regina muttered darkly to herself.She turned to watch Emma as she tried to wear a new pattern into the floor.“Dear, when you’ve been around as long as I have, you find very little to be anxious about.”  
  
Emma stumbled as the word ‘Dear’ registered but continued to plod on nonetheless.Before Emma could respond, Granny was coming through the doorway carrying a tray with three steaming mugs on it.She set it down on the coffee table in front of Regina.Rather than sit down, Granny stood in front of Regina and pinned her with a serious but caring look.  
  
“Regina, things are different now,” she began gently.“Ms. Swan’s presence proves that.The Inn will be sold, and that will put you in a precarious position.If you’re found out, you’ll become a curiosity, something for scientists and think tanks to dissect and ponder over.”  
  
“Mhm,” Emma agreed thoughtfully as she continued to weave back and forth.  
  
“You’d never be alone again,” Granny added as she finally sat down.  
  
Regina impatiently reached out and picked up one of the mugs, the reluctance to agree with Granny clear on her face.  
  
“Ok, so most obvious question first,” Emma interjected.“How did you die?”  
  
Regina took a sip of her tea, seeming not to notice that it was still scalding hot.“I don’t know,” she revealed after a pregnant pause.  
  
Emma threw her hands up.“How do you not know how you died?!Was it pneumonia, gunshot, poison?” Emma began ticking each manner of death off on her fingers.  
“I don’t remember,” Regina insisted, irritation creeping into her tone.  
  
“Her body was discovered in the woods right out there,” Granny revealed as she pointed to the front of the Inn.“Seemed like foul play but nothing was ever proven.”  
Regina had since gone quiet and was instead gazing unseeingly out the window into the very woods Granny had just gestured to.Her face wore a mixture of emotions, the deep sadness in her eyes, however, finally brought Emma’s feet to a stop.  
  
“Homicide,” Emma deadpanned.“Ok, so what were you doing as of your last memory?”  
  
“Returning home,” Regina bit out, clearly not comfortable with the sudden shift in conversation.  
  
“From?” Emma persisted, not the least bit off put by Regina’s reluctance.  
  
“Montreal.”Regina ground out the single word bitterly, knowing what Emma’s next question would be.  
  
“What were you doing in Canada?” Emma asked, her brow furrowed as she began pacing once again.  
  
“It wasn’t honorable,” Regina confessed, her tone making it clear that she didn’t wish to speak further on the topic.  
  
Emma being Emma saw the challenge that Regina was presenting and plowed through it like a bull in a china shop.  
  
“I’m a lawyer, we don’t do honorable,” Emma scoffed.  
  
Regina sighed and shook her head, knowing that Emma would just continue to badger her until she answered.“Are you familiar with the Volstead Act?”  
  
“Somewhat,” Emma nodded as she came around to face Regina.  
  
“It was a law passed a few years prior to my death,” Regina began, her gaze fixed on the floor despite Emma now sitting in front of her.“It banned alcohol in America.”  
  
“Prohibition,” Emma clarified, her gaze searching Regina’s face as she tried to figure out where the woman was going with this.  
  
“What Regina is trying not to say is that she was a bootlegger,” Granny interrupted with no regard for Regina’s ego or attempt at tact.  
  
Rather than look displeased, Emma seemed almost impressed at the revelation and looked back at Regina with a raised eyebrow.  
  
“I prefer the term ‘rum runner’,” Regina muttered into her mug as she took another sip of her tea.  
  
“Wait, I thought you owned this Inn,” Emma asked, a puzzled look on her face.  
  
“It became mine upon the deaths of my parents just months after my return from the Great War,” Regina relayed in a clipped tone.  
  
“And Zelenas’.It was hers too,” Granny reminded Regina.  
  
Regina sighed and pushed herself off the couch, her irritation at both Emma and Granny needling her clearly reaching its limits.She walked over to one of the windows and stared out at the white covered landscape.  
  
“Who’s Zelena?” Emma questioned, still clearly confused.  
  
Another pregnant pause filled the room as Regina debated whether or not to keep acquiescing their need for more information at the cost of her comfort.Finally, she gave a heavy sighed and looked down at the mug still in her hands.  
  
“My sister,” she answered knowing a whole new slew of questions was about to follow.“Were it up to her, this place would have been sold on the heels of our parents demise.”  
  
Sure enough, Emma ceased pacing and came to stand next to Regina at the window, but she stayed quiet for once as though sensing that Regina needed to relay the information in her own time.  
  
“But I kept this place going,” Regina continued, a wistful and proud smile on her face now,“With the help of my cousin Mal.”  
  
Emma waited for Regina to elaborate and after a minute, when she realized that wasn’t going to happen, she pushed a bit more.“Well, that’s lovely but I don’t, uh, understand the bootlegging.”  
  
“Rum running was a means to an end,” Regina explained as she turned to face Emma.“The end was, as it so often is, a man.”


	5. Chapter 5

**** **Chapter Five** ****

**Storybrooke, 1922  
**  
_The Inn glowed with cheery warmth as the bubbling sounds of laughter and exuberance carried up to the second floor from the living area below.  Fresh Christmas decorations that had just been put out that morning added an extra layer of  merriment to the already tastefully decorated foyer and surrounding rooms as Christmas tunes were played out on the upright.  Both Regina and Zelena were pleased with the holiday crowd that had turned out.  With Prohibition still in full effect and disease running rampant through the town, they had figured folks would have opted to stay home; they had underestimated the need of the townsfolk for alcoholic filled libations.  Regina pulled her cousin, Mal, away from the crowd, having stalled the forthcoming conversation as long as she could._  
****

_“Between the economy and influenza, I’m surprised anyone is venturing out at all,” Regina commented, as a round of laughter filtered out to them in the hall._

_Mal remained quiet, her eyes trained on Regina as she waited for her to get to the point.She’d always had an uncanny way of seeing right through Regina.Sighing and pinching the bridge of her nose, Regina broached the topic she had been trying so hard to avoid the past few months._

_“I don’t know how much longer I can keep it afloat,” she revealed as she gestured around her to the Inn._  
  
_Lowering her voice, Mal took half a step closer to Regina.“Look, if it’s money you need, I know some people in Montreal-”_  
  
_Regina chuckled and shook her head, her hand reaching out to grasp Mal’s shoulder and giving it an affectionate squeeze.“Mal, you know I love you, but I’m familiar with your ‘type’ of people.I’m not comfortable going down that route, no offense.”_  
  
_“None taken, cousin,” Mal smirked.“I’m not always too comfortable either.I just hope you don’t have to lose the place after all these years.”_  
  
_They stood in a companionable silence for a moment as they both mulled over the thought of losing the Inn that had been entrusted to Regina upon her father’s death.Despite her mother still being alive and more than capable of handling ownership of the Inn, she had not been afforded a majority share in the owning of the place and had effectively been removed from the day-to-day operations- for now.Regina looked to the front doors as she heard them open, her eyes immediately widening as she took in the ruggedly handsome male walking through them.She turned, taking in his well groomed beard, perfectly coiffed hair, and tailored suit._

_“Who is that?” she muttered before she could stop herself._

_Mal turned to see where her sister’s gaze had landed and her face took on a wistful look.“That’s Robin Locksley,” Mal provided as she smiled at the man.“He and his widowed father recently moved here from Boston.”_  
  
_Both watched as Robin removed his over coat, revealing a much sturdier frame than Regina had imagined for the man.Caught up in the movements, she didn’t even realize she was staring until his gaze met hers, amusement showing behind his eyes.Though she was blushing at being caught, Regina refused to look away._  
  
_“You better move fast, cousin,” Mal warned good-naturedly.“You’re not the only one to have noticed her.”_  
  
_Regina noticed the movement of another female in the living area as she moved towards Robin.Understanding Mal’s warning, Regina quickly moved to intercept her.“Sorry, dear, this room is off-limits to the party,” Regina said sweetly as she smiled at the other woman.Her eyes, however, were anything but kind as she glared at the woman.“Mal will gladly escort you back to the holiday festivities.”_  
  
_With that, Mal wrapped an arm around the now deflated woman and steered her back into the living room and the main party area.Regina watched in amusement as the woman’s slumped shoulders disappeared into the crowd.Turning back to face Robin, she noted the coy smile upon his lips._  
  
_“Aren’t you quick on your feet?” he observed, his eyes crinkling as his smile grew._  
  
_“Only when there is a gentleman in distress,” Regina explained returning his smile.“Otherwise, I’m a total blunderer.”_  
  
_Robin chuckled.“I find that hard to believe.You seem quite capable…and charming,” he admitted reluctantly._

 _“I promise to do everything in my power to keep that impression from never changing,” Regina vowed as her expression became suddenly serious._  
_Seeming not to want to deal with such a heavy topic, Robin chuckled softly once more as his eyes swept around the Inn._

_“Your Inn is beautiful,” he remarked appreciatively as his eyes swept over the room._

_“More so with you here,” Regina ventured, hoping she was reading the signals correctly._

_Robin’s eyes widened a bit as a surprised smile tugged at his lips.“My, my.You are the charmer.”Seeming to size her up, Robin gave her a kind smile.“My name is Robin.”_  
  
_Regina ducked her head briefly before she met his eyes once again.“I know,” she revealed, taking in the impressed look upon Robin’s face.She waited a beat before divulging her own name.“Regina.”_  
  
_“I know,” Robin echoed as he offered her a kind smile._

 

 **Storybrooke, Present Day  
**  
Emma watched Regina’s face as she recounted her past, the normally stoic woman seeming to come to life at the memories.  A small smile had begun to unconsciously spread over her features as she’d brought up Robin and Emma had found herself smiling in return.  As Regina seemed to realize that she had revealed too much, her walls fell back in place and all traces of the smile, and the wistful look on her face, were wiped away.  She stared at Emma for a beat, seeming to need to ground herself for a moment, before she hastily turned to face the window.  Emma frowned as the woman she’d seen moments ago disappeared in front of her very eyes.  Reading between the lines, Emma decided it was worth the risk to try and push some additional details out of Regina.  
****

“Was he your sweetheart?” she asked boldly, watching as Regina’s jaw clenched immediately in response.Emma rushed to clarify when it looked like she might not get an answer.“Robin, was he-“

“He was,” Regina cut in abruptly, refusing to look at Emma.“Until he betrayed me with my sister.That much I remember quite well.”  
  
With that, Regina turned and swept out of the room.Emma at least had the sense to look guilty as she glanced over at Granny, the other woman staring after Regina with something akin to pity on her face.  
  
“I think it best that we leave her be for the time being,” Granny suggested as she gather the tea cups back on the tray.“Matters of the heart can be everlasting, especially when the heart was wronged.”  
  
Choosing not to answer, Emma nodded as she watched Regina disappear into the library across the hall, the door shutting quietly behind her. 

**XXX**

A few hours had passed since Emma had last seen Regina.  The door to the library had remained firmly shut and Emma hadn’t heard even the creak of a floor board from within to suggest that Regina were in there.  She and Granny had spent the better part of their afternoon trying to find any and all information on Robin, Zelena, and Regina but had come up mostly empty handed.  Finally, as night was settling in around them, Emma had grown frustrated and she knew that the best source of information they would have was hiding behind that door.  Sending Granny home with a promise not to tick Regina off too much, Emma was now standing in front of the closed door, reluctant to intrude on the solitude that Regina so clearly wished for.  She knocked gently but received no response.  Pushing the door open slightly, she immediately spotted Regina sitting in a chair, glasses perched on her nose as she stared down at a small red book.  
****

“Oh, there you are,” Emma declared, like she hadn’t been hyper aware of where the woman had been the entire afternoon.

Regina didn’t look up, her eyes glued to the book in her lap as her hands ran over its worn cover almost reverently.“This was his favorite,” she revealed, her words so low that Emma would have missed them if she hadn’t been so tuned into every nuance of Regina.

Taking it as a good sign that she hadn’t been told to leave immediately upon entering the room, Emma stepped more fully inside.Drawing closer, she saw that Regina was holding a copy of “A Christmas Carol” in her hands. 

“Would you…” Emma started tentatively, afraid to further upset the woman but genuinely curious.“Would you tell me more about him?”

The soft smile that Regina had previously had on her face returned for the briefest of moments as her eyes took on a far off look.Memories played out in her mind until she settled on one she felt comfortable enough sharing.

“We were engaged to be married several months after we’d met,” Regina began, a softness in her voice that Emma had not yet heard.“We had a whirlwind romance, you could say.Initially, his father did not agree that marrying me was in Robin’s best interests.His father believed me to be reckless and too aloof.When he found out that I owned this Inn, however, his opinion quickly changed.”  
  
Regina sighed and finally looked towards Emma, though she didn’t seem to be seeing the other woman, her mind still in the past.“My sister and I were having financial issues, as I mentioned before, and though I knew I was in love and we were set to be married, if I didn’t do something, we were going to lose the Inn come the next Christmas.This Inn was the only thing that made me worthy of marrying Robin.”A dark look passed over Regina’s face as the memories played out in her mind.“Things had become desperate so I went to Mal to find out more about Montreal and the people she had tried to tell me about on Christmas past.”  
  
Abruptly, Regina seemed to come back to herself, her eyes focusing once more and her hands stilling on the book.Seeming to realize that Emma was waiting for her to continue, Regina stood and shelved the book, brushing her hand over it one last time.  
  
“You’re persistent,” she remarked as she turned to face Emma once more. 

“Well, Granny has gone back to her place but I still think we could get in some good work,” Emma replied hopefully.  
  
“No work,” Regina stated in a tone that brokered no argument.“We’re done.”  
“Regina-” Emma began, frustration coloring her own tone.  
  
“For tonight,” Regina clarified calmly.At Emma’s surprised look, she smirked.“We’re done for tonight.We will continue.A promise is a promise.”  
  
Emma let out a relieved sigh, suddenly realizing how absolutely tired she was from the days events.Turning she began to walk out, intending to go straight to bed.Making it a couple steps, she froze as a thought struck her.  
  
“So…” she hesitated, back still to Regina.“Where are you sleeping tonight?”  
  
Regina picked up another book and sat back where Emma had found her before answering.“I don’t sleep.”  
  
“Of course you don’t,” Emma scoffed, rolling her eyes.“Look, just don’t come in my room, okay?”  
  
Regina looked momentarily confused as she shook her head. “I would not.”  
  
“You already did,” Emma accused as she crossed her arms over her chest.  
  
A smile tugged at the corners of Regina’s mouth as she looked down “Well, I would not now,” she promised.  
  
Emma nodded, satisfied, and turned to leave once more.  
  
“What does your husband say of you staying here,” Regina called out, stopping the blonde mid stride.  
  
Emma turned back to face Regina once more, her eyes refusing to meet Regina’s.“I’m not married,” she revealed.  
  
“You’re beau, then,” Regina pressed, no malice in her words just curiosity.  
  
“Don’t have one of those either,” Emma bit out, a blush creeping up her neck.  
  
Regina’s nodded at her, almost as though she had expected such answers, and Emma felt her temper flare.  
  
“If you say one word about me being an old maid, it will not go well for you, alright?” Emma threatened, her hand coming up to rest on her hip.“Times have changed since you were last in the world.”  
  
“People don’t fall in love?” Regina asked, perplexed.

“Some do…I haven’t.”Emma felt the blush on her neck spreading to her cheeks so to prevent Regina from seeing, she abruptly turned and walked out of the library with purpose throwing a hasty goodnight over her shoulder.  
  
Retreating upstairs, she was pulled out of her own musings by what sounded like whispers coming from one of the other rooms.Pausing, she strained to make out what was being said or where exactly it was coming from.Glancing behind her, she noticed one of the room doors slightly ajar.As she drew nearer, the whisperings grew louder.  
  
“Hello?” she called nervously as she shoved the door open.  
  
Seeing nothing but suddenly feeling very cold, Emma pulled her sweater tighter around her as the whispers quieted and disappeared.Chalking it up to her still pounding head injury and exhaustion, Emma shook her head and turned away from the room to continue down the hall.So wrapped up was she that she missed the creaking of the door as it swung closed behind her of its own volition.Pushing into her own room, Emma couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched.She pulled a chair over in front of her door, wedging it against it so that it couldn’t be opened.Satisfied that she would be secure from any wandering “spirits” she settled in for the night.Her sleep was restless and she immediately fell into a dream so life like, Emma would swear later that it was real.

**XXX**

_Emma found herself standing at the base of the stairs of the Inn, watching as Regina descended the stairs with another unfamiliar woman walking next to her.The woman had wild red curls that were flying every which way and her complexion was much more pale than Regina’s but her face had features similar to Regina’s.Both appeared frustrated and Emma flinched as the red head’s voice rang out in the quiet space around them._

_“It’s foolish!”_  
  
_“It’s $600.00 each run,” Regina insisted, her voice remarkably calm despite her eyes rolling in exasperation._  
  
_“Is it illegal?” the other woman asked as she struggled to keep up with Regina._  
  
_“That’s none of your business, stay out of it,” Regina replied coldly as she reached the bottom of the stairs._  
  
_“It’s my Inn too!” objected the other woman, whom Emma guessed must be Zelena.“Just because I don’t run it doesn’t mean-”_

 _“That’s right,” Regina seethed as she spun around to face Zelena.“You don’t run it.I do!”_  
  
_Taken aback, Zelena seemed to gather herself.“As your sister, I can protest your actions.Particularly when they’re illegal.What if something happens to you?”_  
  
_“Well, consider…if I’m arrested or I die, you’ll have your shot at Robin,” Regina spat, all traces of her previous annoyance replaced with fury.“Don’t pretend, Zelena.You follow him like a puppy.It’s pathetic.”_

 _Regina moved to walk away but was stopped when Zelena suddenly lurched forward and grabbed her arm.“At least I take her feelings into consideration, which is more than I can say for you.”_  
  
_Regina’s eyes flashed as she pulled her arm from Zelena’s grasp.For a moment, Emma thought she might actually hit Zelena but Regina turned and stormed away, Emma hot on her heels.She followed Regina into the living area where she saw a blonde woman bent over numerous bottles of what she assumed was alcohol.Regina marched up to where the woman was crouched, anger clear in the tight pull of her shoulders._  
  
_“You told Zelena about Montreal?” she demanded angrily._

 _The woman glanced up her, seeming not to be bothered by Regina’s tone.“She wanted to see the books.I had to explain where the money was coming from-”_  
  
_“You owe Zelena no explanation,” Regina cut in, barely checked wrath dripping from each of her words.“I’m the one you report to, is that clear?”_  
  
_The blonde chuckled, still not taking Regina’s demeanor seriously.“Cousin-”_  
  
_“Is that clear, Mal?”Regina demanded icily._  
  
_“It’s clear,” Mal assured her, the smirk disappearing at Regina’s tone._

**XXX  
**

Emma felt herself ripped from the dream, her eyes springing open as she sat up with a gasp.Bringing a shaking hand to her face, she felt the sweat cropping up on her forehead.Glancing up, she saw that the chair was still in place at the door.She struggled to understand what she had just experienced.Had it been a dream?It had felt so real that Emma was willing to bet it was a memory.How, she had absolutely no idea.But she had no other way of explaining how she suddenly knew what Zelena or Mal looked like.Settling back into her bed, she knew she would have more questions than ever for Regina when she woke up in the morning. 

Not quite wanting to leave the comfort of her bed, Emma pulled her tablet to her, noting that she’d only been asleep for a few hours.Sighing, Emma prepared herself for a long night burning the midnight oil.She tabbed through some of the webpages she and Granny had gone over earlier, noticing for the first time a link to a book that had been published a few years prior on the haunted Inns of New England.Intrigued, Emma clicked on it and was excited to find several chapters of the book dedicated to the Storybrooke Inn.Emma snuggled down into her bedding as she lost herself in the history and lore of the Inn.So caught up was she in the book, that Emma didn’t even realize when the sky began to go from dark to light a few hours later. 

Emma was nearly finished reading when her bathroom door suddenly slammed open.Letting out a startled gasp as she violently jumped back, Emma stared wide eyed at the door, her heart suddenly beating a thousand miles a minute.Seeing no one around but having seen the trick before, Emma tentatively called out.  
  
“Regina?”  
  
When no answer came, Emma shook off the uneasy feeling in her gut and clambered out of the bed.Stretching, she finally looked at the clock on the dresser and saw it was just after 7.Figuring she might as well get up, she quickly stretched before moving into her morning routine.Showering and dressing quickly, Emma made her way into the hallway when she heard a loud thud upstairs.She hadn’t yet ventured into that portion of the Inn but figured that now was as good a time as any.She hesitantly ascended the stairs, the feeling of unease returning to settle heavily in her stomach as another thud rang out above her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm getting sick and I'm very tired after working almost two weeks straight so any grammar/spelling errors are completely my fault.
> 
> Again, I'd just like to be clear that I do not own these characters, most of the plot and some of the dialogue in this story. I'm just out here having a good time.

**Chapter Six**

Emma cautiously made her way upstairs, careful of her footsteps on the old and creaky wooded staircase.  She frowned and glanced around her as another thud sounded, this time closer.  Following the noise, she reached the landing and jumped slightly as the thudding rang out again, this time so close it was nearly on top of her.  Noting a wooden door to her right, she silently crept towards it and leaned forward once she reached it, straining to hear anything.  She was startled again as a thud, definitely from the other side of the door, sounded again.  Emma turned the knob and was slightly surprised to find it unlocked.  Steeling herself, she took a deep breath before she bravely pushed it open and burst into the room.  
****

“Oh!” Emma blurted almost immediately as she came to an ubrupt halt just within the doorway.

Regina was standing on the other side of the room with her back to the door, apparently ironing the dress she had chosen to wear for the day. That, however, was not what had given Emma pause and was causing a blush to burn across her cheeks.Regina was clothed in what appeared to be lingerie- a black lace bra accompanied by a cream colored silk slip adorned with matching black lace around the bottom hemline.Regina turned slightly to regard her, but quickly returned to the task at hand.

“Good morning, Miss Swan,” Regina greeted, her voice giving no indication that she was bothered by Emma’s sudden appearance in her room.  
  
Emma stood frozen in the threshold of the room as her eyes roamed over Regina’s exposed skin, the muscles of her back moving in time with that of the iron.Trying to gather herself, Emma couldn’t stop her eyes from following the lines of her curves as she traced them from Regina’s shoulders to where her hips disappeared beneath the silk of her slip.

“Uh…um,” Emma stuttered as she finally tore her eyes from Regina’s barely covered body and glanced around the room.

Her eyes fell to what appeared to be a neatly preserved nurses uniform in drab army green and Emma made a mental note to ask Regina about that later.Noticing a dresser against the nearest wall lined with black and white framed photographs, Emma invited herself in to the room, being sure to keep her eyes downcast.When Regina merely glanced at her and rolled her eyes but didn’t protest, Emma picked up one of the photographs.In it, Regina was standing in front of the Inn with a man that Emma thought she recognized as Robin.

“Is this Robin?” she asked, still not sure if what she had experienced was a dream or a memory.  
  
She made the mistake of glancing up at Regina as she asked the question and her mouth instantly went dry as she realized how close the other woman now was. At her new proximity, Emma could also make out the thin line of a scar a few inches long running over the top of Regina’s right hip.Emma made another mental note to ask about that later as well.Luckily, Regina’s back was still turned and she couldn’t see the completely slack-jawed manner in which Emma was regarding her.“He…he’s quite handsome,” Emma finally stuttered as she tore her eyes away from Regina and looked back at the photograph.

Emma gently placed it back on the dresser where she had found it before the thud of the iron on the board beneath it caused her to jump.Regina sighed before turning to fully face Emma.Emma, for her part, was already flustered and felt her cheeks burn even more as she struggled to look anywhere but at Regina’s body.Due to their proximity, however, it was impossible not to catch sight of the woman in her peripherals and Emma did her best not to stare.She did note, however, there was a matching puckered scar on Regina’s right hip very nearly in the same place as the one on her back.Again, noting that for later, Emma also noticed that Regina was simultaneously soft with womanly curves but defined by muscled lines developed through hard, daily physical labor.Emma felt her heart rate quicken as the woman took a deliberate step toward her.  
  
“I will share with you pertinent information to accomplish our goal, but my room is off limits,” Regina advised her as she crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance.  
  
Immediately Emma’s embarrassment took a back seat to her anger as her eyes snapped to Regina’s in an instant.   
  
“Yeah, mine too,” Emma bit back tersely.“So I’d appreciate it if you knocked it off with the door banging.”  
  
Brushing past Emma with her dress in hand, Regina disappeared behind a partition.   
  
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she called out from behind the fake wall.  
  
“Oh come on,” Emma snorted.“This morning?Not even an hour ago?My bathroom door just magically swung open of it’s own accord?”  
  
Regina reappeared now dressed in a very flattering knee length deep blue dress, annoyance still clear in the lines of her face.“I truly do not know what you speak of.”

Emma huffed in annoyance as the woman brushed past her and out of the room.Conceding that Regina wouldn’t admit to continuing to harass her, Emma threw her hands up in defeat as she followed her out of the room and down the stairs.  
  
“Let’s just get back to work,” Emma grumbled.  
  
“Agreed.”Rather than head to the library, Regina made a beeline for the kitchen.“But first, breakfast.”  
  
Sighing, Emma just rolled her eyes.“Hungriest ghost ever,” she muttered.  
  
She followed Regina through the dining room and across the main entertainment area where the bar was situated.There, Emma was surprised to see Granny standing and talking to a young brunette.Emma sensed the tension in Regina’s body as she realized that they weren’t alone.Anger flared on the other woman’s face and Emma quickly stepped between her and the two women.

“Uh…Hello,” Emma hesitantly greeted them as she offered them a half-hearted wave.  
  
“Um, Emma Swan, this is Ruby Lucas,” Granny began as way of introduction.“My granddaughter.”   
  
Emma was distracted as Regina brushed past her and stalked towards the kitchen, anger clear in the tension of her shoulders.Wishing she could follow Regina but knowing she couldn’t possibly be that rude to the girl now standing in front of her and offering a kind smile as well as her hand, Emma offered her own in return.

“Just Ruby is fine,” the girl clarified as they shook hands.  
  
“It’s nice to meet you,” Emma replied, her eyes darting to the kitchen.“Sorry about my friend.She’s um…weird.” 

“Shy,” Granny cut in at the same time, tossing a meaningful look at Emma as she did so.  
  
“Oh, well, we’re all a little weird,” Ruby chuckled lightly, not bothered in the slightest by Regina’s brush off.“Small town life, right?”  
  
Emma and Granny chuckled awkwardly at that, glancing at each other again.    


“So, I heard my cousin came by a couple times,” Ruby declared.  
  
“Your cousin?” Emma inquired, not sure to whom Ruby was referring.  
  
“The Sheriff,” Ruby quickly explained as she goofily pointed finger guns at the blonde.  
  
“Oh! Yeah, yes, yes,” Emma replied hastily as realization dawned on her.“You know, I’m sure he thinks _I’m_ a little weird.I’m sure he doesn’t get calls like that from Granny.”  
  
“No,” Ruby agreed.“Granny here is fairly self-sufficient.”  
  
Emma chuckled at that, noting the clear affection Ruby had for Granny in the way she lovingly patted the other woman’s shoulder.She could tell instantly that Ruby was a kind soul and someone easy to get along with.Emma already knew that given the chance, they’d likely be fast friends.The realization startled her because Emma had no true friends back in Boston and rarely allowed herself to get close to anyone.  
  
“Um, so, the water pipes in my pub, they- they burst,” Ruby segued seamlessly, a pained look crossing her features.  
  
“Oh no,” Granny groaned instantly, a look of concern crossing her features.  
  
“Um, yeah, the place is a total mess,” Ruby relayed, a look of despair briefly crossing her features.“If there is any chance you’d think about opening the tavern here for the holidays-,”  
  
“No!” came a prompt and anger filled response.  
  
Emma rolled her eyes and sighed as she looked past Granny and saw Regina sweeping back into the room.There was a barely controlled fury contorting the feature of her face but even so, Emma found her stunning.Not at all trying to entertain _that_ train of thought, Emma abruptly turned back to Ruby.  
  
“What she means is, she needs more time to work out the specifics,” Emma explained.  
  
“Specifically, _no_.” Regina insisted, irritation coating her words.

Emma smiled tightly at Ruby but the brunette seemed to be unfazed by Regina’s attitude.She turned to Regina and brightly smiled at her instead, much to the surprise of Granny and Emma.  
  
“Hi!I’m Ruby.What’s your name?” Ruby asked cheerfully.

Regina’s eyebrows rose and she gave a pointed look first to Granny before turning and giving the same look to Emma.Emma recognized it for what it was; Regina was daring them to tell Ruby exactly what was going on.Feeling her anxiety beginning to bubble up, Emma quickly tried to think of some response.  
  
“Roni,” Emma blurted the first thing that came to her mind.  
  
“It is absolutely not Roni,” Regina responded flatly as she shook her head in annoyance.“A ridiculous name if I ever heard such a thing.”  
  
Emma chuckled breathlessly as her anxiety rose to near panic level.  
  
“Will you just excuse us for a moment?” she begged Ruby as she worked to keep the panic off her face. 

At the other woman’s curious nod, Emma turned and swept out of the room, being sure to drag Regina behind her.  
  
“Thank-you!” she called over her shoulder as she disappeared.  
  
Emma pulled Regina into the library across the hall and once they were through the door, she whirled on the other woman.  
  
“What is wrong with you?!” Emma furiously whispered.“Do you want her to know who you really are?”  
  
“I want her to leave,” Regina shot back.“Were you not dangling the slim chance of being useful?I want you gone as well so I can have my solitude.”  
  
“Oh yeah?”Emma stepped in closer to Regina, her body nearly vibrating with anger.“Well, one way to guarantee you’ll never have your solitude again is to let her find out who you are, so cool it _Roni_.”  
  
Regina growled in frustration as she half turned away from Emma.Before Emma could react, a finger was in her face.  
  
“This is shaping up to be the worst Christmas since I died,” Regina seethed.  
  
“Oh, stop being so dramatic and just follow my lead!” Emma demanded, exasperated.  
  
Taking hold of Regina’s wrist, she dragged her back out into the hall and toward the bar area once more.Taking a deep breath and plastering a fake cheery smile on  
her face, she pulled Regina back into the room.  
  
“Roni, is a Mills cousin,” Emma explained as she stepped back in, the fake smile hurting her cheeks.  
  
Ruby nodded, still clearly confused.  
  
“Hello,” Regina muttered, the previous bite in her words cooled down.  
  
“She stopped by to get a look at the Inn,” Granny took over.“After Cora’s death, of course.”  
  
“Oh,” Ruby replied, sympathy taking the place of her confusion.  
  
“I only knew her as a frigid and unyielding mother,” Regina dismissed emotionlessly.  
  
Emma’s anxiety ratcheted back up at that and she spontaneously began chuckling again.The confusion reappeared on Ruby’s face as she clearly tried to figure out if Regina was being serious.Emma just shook her head and waved her hand across her throat indicating that Ruby should just ignore the other woman.Seeming to accept it, Ruby chuckled herself.  
  
“Well, the Inn has always been one of my favorite places around town,” Ruby shared.“And frankly, I was kind of hoping that the tavern would be open.”  
  
She turned to Granny with a pleading look on her face.And Emma felt the anger rolling off Regina as the woman silently stewed beside her.  
  
“My pub is going to be down for at least a week,” Ruby continued obliviously.“I would love to send folks here.”  
  
“I wish we could help out,” Granny lamented, “But the staff is on holiday.”  
  
“Well, I could bring my people,” Ruby offered.“I have a great bartender.”  
  
At that, Regina scoffed as a disbelieving chuckle escaped her.  
  
“What?” Ruby asked curiously.  
  
“Well, I find that hard to believe,” Regina stated matter-o-factly.  
  
“Have you ever even been to my pub?” Ruby challenged, amusement lighting her features.  
  
“The only bartender that I trust is myself,” Regina proclaimed.  
  
“Oh…,” Ruby looked nothing if not intrigued by the self-proclamation and raised a brow.“Oh really?”  
  
“Mhm,” Regina nodded, her arrogant smirk suddenly appearing.  
  
“Hmm,” Ruby began thoughtfully as she tossed a look at Granny.“Prove it,” she challenged a smirk of her own overtaking her features.  
  
“No, no proving it.She’s not good at it.” Emma protested, her anxiety now fully out of control.Turning to Regina, she tried desperately to plead with her eyes as she lowered her voice.“You’re not good at it.”  
  
“Tonight,” Regina answered instead as she eyed Ruby.“Bring companions.”  
  
Emma threw her hands up again and marched past Regina to sit at the bar.It was only 8 in the morning but Emma suddenly found herself dying for a whiskey.  
  
“By then, I will have secured the ingredients to establish my veracity,” Regina continued self-righteously.  
  
“Hm, I have no idea what you just said but I will see you tonight,” Ruby confirmed, a smile spreading across her features.Ruby stuck her hand out, and Regina stared at it perplexed for a moment. “Shake,” Ruby prompted.  
  
Regina tentatively stuck her hand out and grasped Ruby’s firmly, giving it a single shake.Emma could tell immediately that Regina was not used to women taking part  
in such customs that she knew were surely only used by men in her time.  
  
“There you go,” Ruby acknowledged once Regina released her hand.  
  
“Ok then,” Granny spluttered, a stunned look on her face.“We’ll see you later, I guess.”  
  
Regina smirked as she walked past Emma and up to the liquor shelved behind the bar. 

“A challenge,” Regina remarked as she chuckled, “From a lady.Even after death, there are firsts.”  
  
“What about your solitude?” Emma mocked good-naturedly.  
  
“Well, your presence has negated much hope I have for _that_ ,” Regina replied sarcastically as she moved behind the bar itself.“While I may be deceased, I will not allow my honor to be questioned without retort.”  
  
“Hmm,” Emma hummed challengingly.  
  
“It’s the principle of it,” Regina further explained as she threw her hands up in frustration.“This bar is in deplorable condition.”  
  
Moving back over to the liquor display, she continued to search for whatever it was she couldn’t seem to find. 

“Where’s the Fernet-Branca?” Emma heard her mutter to herself.

Emma shook her head and grabbed the pen sitting on the bar and a cocktail napkin.Clicking the pen, she began writing on the napkin.Regina turned at the noise and  
stared at her in confusion.  
  
“What are you doing?” Regina asked, perplexed.  
  
“Making a shopping list,” Emma informed her with a smirk.“If you’re going to do this, you’re going to do this right.”  
  
Regina smirked, an indiscernible emotion flitting across her face that Emma almost thought was gratitude before she turned around and went back to looking at the liquor supply. 

 

**XXX**

 

Emma was happily leaning on the bar and swirling her latest beverage in front of her as music played over several strategically placed speakers and people chatted around her.After she’d gotten the list together that morning, Emma had spent an hour googling 20th Century alcohol and what their equivalent was in the 21st Century.Once she’d finally figured it all out and actually retrieved said supplies, she’d returned to the Inn to find Regina waiting for her with a mischievous look in her eye and her trademark smirk in place.When Emma had silently handed the supplies over, Regina had insisted on “practicing” her drink making since she was not accustomed to 21st Century liquors.Emma had made the fortuitous decision to be Regina’s guinea pig and had ended up being well on her way to happily buzzed by the time Ruby had returned that night.

So now, on her sixth drink in nearly as many hours, Emma was quite content despite the social activity  
going on around her that would normally have her locked in the bathroom hiding.  
  
“Ah, yes,” came Regina’s triumphant exclamation as she poured some pink concoction into a glass. 

Emma smiled as she sipped on Regina’s equivalent but significantly better version of a moscow mule with whiskey.  
  
“Try this,” Regina demanded with a smirk as she handed the newly filled glass across the bar to Ruby.  
  
Taking a tentative sip, the brunette immediately broke out in a smile.  
  
“Mmhm!Now that is a Hanky-Panky,” Ruby declared as she took another sip.  
  
“It is indeed,” Regina agreed as she poured the remaining mixture into several other waiting glasses. “Taught to me by Coleman herself the summer I spent at the Savoy.”  
  
Ruby laughed at that, taking it as a joke.“You are so hilarious.”  
  
Emma watched their interaction, a smile spreading more widely across her features.She watched the ease with which Regina handled the glassware and liquor, so clearly in her element.Despite her adamant arguments to the contrary, Regina clearly loved entertaining.Emma found herself inexplicably drawn to the other woman, content to simply watch her work.  
  
“So, do you know the Singapore-Sling?” Ruby inquired as she continued to sip on her Hanky-Panky.  
  
“Is that similar to a Straits Sling?” Regina fired back.  
  
“Hmm…Let’s find out,” Ruby decided as she stood and walked around the bar.  
  
Emma was pulled out of the moment by her phone vibrating in front of her.Grabbing it and looking at the caller ID, she hastily stood and retreated to the hallway where she would have a little more privacy.

“Hello?”  
  
“Emma, dearie, you’re alive” came Gold’s sarcasm filled response.

“I’m sorry?” Emma replied, her brow furrowing in confusion.  
  
“Well, I haven’t heard from you in over 24 hours and the property still hasn’t been appraised by my understanding,” Gold explained sweetly, though Emma could hear  
the anger seething beneath the words.“I assumed some great tragedy befell you as this is taking so long.”  
  
Emma winced at the words.She knew he wasn’t wrong, but truthfully, she’d been so wrapped up in the mystery that was Regina, she’d forgotten completely about actually getting the property ready for sale.  
  
“It’s just taking a bit longer than normal,” she tried but was cut off by a scoff on the other end.  
  
“It’s a property appraisal,” Gold chided.“You should have handled this by now and it’s not like we had a lot of time to begin with.”  
  
“This whole ghost thing is causing more problems than I anticipated,” Emma tried to justify.  
  
“You know, it was funny at first but now it’s tedious,” Gold advised her in a warning tone.  
  
“Tell me about it,” Emma grumbled.  
  
There was a pause and everything went quiet on Gold’s end of the line.  
  
“Are you at a party?!” Emma pulled the phone away from her ear as the man practically yelled in her ear.  
  
“No…,” Emma began, intent on lying but knowing Gold would see right through it.“Kind of.”  
  
“Get the property appraised and get back to Boston, Emma, quickly,” Gold ordered in a way that told Emma if she didn’t she’d be unemployed.  
  
Emma pressed the end button for the call without even bothering to acknowledge Gold’s demand.She knew she would probably hear about it later but she would just blame it on bad cell coverage.She downed the rest of her drink quickly, trying to wipe the stress from her mind.Sighing, Emma made her way back to the bar and sat down, a slight slump in her shoulders.Regina gave her a curious look but didn’t comment, placing a new colored drink down in front of her instead.Ruby was still behind the bar nursing her same drink from when Emma left her but she was looking around the room rather than paying attention to mixing drinks.  
  
“You need a Christmas Tree,” she commented to Regina.  
  
“Why?” Regina scoffed.  
  
“Because it’s Christmas,” Ruby replied as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.  
  
“There used to be a tree in the front room every year,” Regina revealed as she set drinks out for the wait staff to collect and disperse.  
  
“I thought you’d never been here before,” Ruby queried, clearly perplexed.  
  
Before Regina could answer, Emma leaned forward.“Granny mentioned it earlier.”  
  
Ruby chuckled but nodded as she looked around once more.“I have always found this Inn to be so romantic, you know?”  
  
“Mmm,” Emma hummed as she experimentally tried her new drink.It was actually quite delicious and again, featured whiskey.Regina gave her a knowing glance and continued effortlessly mixing drinks.  
  
“Ghosts and tragedies and scandalous marriages,” Ruby continued, an excited look taking over her features.“I mean, people gossip about it even today.”

“Scandalous marriages?Whose?” Emma wondered aloud.  
  
“Zelena Mills and Robin,” Ruby replied, again, in a tone that suggested Emma should have already known that.“They married only a month after his fiancé, Regina, died.   
You’ve heard of Regina Mills, haven’t you?”  
  
Emma didn’t miss the way Regina’s smirk disappeared and her movements became unsteady and jerky as she moved behind the bar.Emma tried to meet her gaze but it appeared the woman was deliberately avoiding looking up.Emma couldn’t understand what had caused the sudden change in the woman  
  
“A little bit,” Emma answered as she struggled to maintain a neutral expression.  
  
“Well, nobody believed the marriage was real,” Ruby began leaning in conspiratorially and acting as though the people she was referring to were still around to overhear them.“The baby came too soon after they were married.Folks said it wasn’t Robin’s but no one was ever sure.”  
  
“There was a baby?” Emma asked, stunned.  
  
“Mhm,” Ruby replied as she took a sip of her drink.  
  
“Emma…,” Regina warned, a dangerous look flashing across her face.  
  
“It only lived a couple hours though,” Ruby continued,“And Robin, he passed days later.In this Inn.Said it was a broken heart between losing Regina and then the baby.That is so sad.”  
  
Emma jolted in surprise as Regina slammed the bottle of liquor she’d been holding down on the bar.Storming out of the room, Emma stared after the woman, perplexed.  
  
“What’s got her so bent out of shape?” Ruby pondered aloud as both women watched Regina stalk from the room.  
  
Emma remained mute on the subject, choosing instead to turn back and stare into her drink, puzzled herself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

 

After about ten minutes without any sign of Regina returning, Emma excused herself to look for the woman in question.  She almost immediately found Regina pacing in the living area, a tumbler full of amber liquid clenched so tightly in her hand that her knuckles were white.  If Emma had to guess, she assumed it would be cider.  She’d seen Regina drinking it the other night as she’d read by the fire.  There was a look of fury still burning on the other woman’s face as she glanced up and noticed Emma watching her.  
****

“Why did you storm off like that?” Emma demanded as she stepped in front of Regina and forced the other woman to cease her movements.

“Are you really that insensitive?” Regina asked, dumbfounded.  
  
“We were getting good information!” Emma insisted, not the least bit apologetic.

“About my life.”Regina came to stand in front of her and was now gesturing angrily at herself.“ _My_ life, Emma.Not some gossip to be chatted about over drinks.”  
  
When Emma rolled her eyes and looked away, Regina’s eyes flashed with rage.  
  
“Oh, I know, to you, this must feel like some story from long ago to dredge up, but it’s not, it’s real!” Regina snarled.“ _I’m_ real and it certainly doesn’t feel that long ago to me.”

Regina’s anger left her breathing heavily, her face flushed as she worked to compose herself.Turning slightly away from Emma, she raised her glass to her lips but before she took a sip she was gesturing at Emma.

“And to answer your question, which I’m sure is coming, no I did not know about Robin’s fate or the baby,” Regina barked.

Uncertainty overtook Emma’s features as Regina turned away from her once more.Emma watched as she downed what was left in her tumbler in one go and promptly refilled the glass from the drink cart near the fire.

“Mal didn’t tell you about the baby?” Emma questioned softly, confused about why that would be.  
  
“She told me of their marriage, but I forbade her from telling me more,” Regina revealed, the anger slowly bleeding out of her words until she sounded more defeated than anything.“Precisely for this reason.”  
  
“Well, it sounds like it wasn’t a real marriage,” Emma tried, scrambling for anything that might make Regina less upset.   
  
“My sister’s feelings for Robin were real,” Regina countered quietly, her eyes glassy.  
  
“Yeah, but he loved you though, right?” Emma challenged, sure that no matter what had happened, Robin’s feelings for Regina had been genuine.  
  
“I don’t know,” Regina admitted reluctantly as she ran a hand across her face.“He was furious with me the last time I left.”  
  
At Emma’s questioning gaze, Regina sighed and took a healthy sip of the liquor in her glass.  
  
“Zelena told him about the rum running.”Regina looked down, clearly ashamed.“At the point he found out, I’d already done several runs and had embedded myself in Mal’s network of ‘friends’.”  
  
  
**Storybrooke, 1923**

_“How could you even consider this?!” Robin exploded, his breath hanging heavy in the cold air between them._

 _Regina sighed in exasperation, her anger at Zelena for blabbing to Robin competing with her annoyance at being chastised by Robin in that moment.Pulling her heavy wool jacket more tightly around her, she stamped her feet to keep them warm.Robin had dragged her out of the house and into the now frozen garden abruptly just a few moments ago and before Regina had even had a chance to ask what had happened, the fury on Robin’s face had clarified everything._  
  
_“The money will help me-,” Regina began, calmer than she felt._  
  
_“It will mean nothing if you’re disgraced or thrown in jail…or worse,” Robin fired back, not even willing to let Regina explain herself._  
  
_“Zelena blew the dangers out of proportion,” Regina dismissed with a roll of her eyes._

 _“No._ I _am the one who does not wish for you to go through with this,” Robin revealed as he stepped closer to Regina, anger and betrayal burning in his eyes.“I am!”_  
  
_“Robin-,” Regina started but was again interrupted by him._  
  
_“Promise me you won’t go along with Mal’s schemes,” Robin begged, his anger melting away only to be replaced by fear.“Promise me you’ll be here with me for Christmas.”_  
  
_Regina steeled herself against his pleas, her resolve wavering as he gently took hold of her jacket lapels and pulled her a half step forward.The concern and affection in the gesture was clear and Regina found herself torn between making the next run or just forgoing it and doing as Robin wished.Thinking on how the Inn was struggling, however, she knew that she needed to continue making the runs if she wished to keep it above water._  
  
_“You’re making too much of this,” Regina insisted as Robin looked at her doubtfully, his hands tightening fearfully on her jacket._  
  
_“Just…promise me,” he plead, his eyes filled with worry as he punctuated his words with a gentle shake of the jacket he held._  
  
_“I promise!”_  
  
_Robin just looked at her sadly, seeming to realize that he would not win the argument.He nodded and released her jacket, his hands running gently down it as he smoothed out the wrinkles he’d put there.He turned and set off back towards the Inn, casting one last longing look back at Regina.As she watched him go, the guilt began slowly eating her alive.She just knew that if she didn’t do this, there was a good chance that she would loose the Inn, and by consequence, Robin._

  
**Storybrooke, Present Day**

Emma stood silently as Regina recounted the memory, her own annoyance growing.  When she realized Regina had finished, she scoffed mercilessly at the other woman.  
****

“You lied to him,” she accused Regina, that feeling of betrayal all too familiar from Emma’s own life.  
  
“I was protecting him,” Regina argued, her own anger flaring back up.  
  
“Yeah, keep telling yourself that,” Emma shot back sarcastically.“That’s always how people like you always justify your duplicity.”  
  
“That is unfair!”  
  
“You know what’s unfair?Lying to people!He probably hated you for it. I know I would.”Seeming to reach a realization, Emma let out a humorless chuckle.“Maybe _he_ killed you.”  
  
Regina’s reaction was immediate as she whirled on the other woman.  
  
“You’ve crossed a line, Miss Swan,”Regina’s tone was dangerous and her eyes flashed with barely contained rage.  
  
“Yeah?” Emma challenged as she stepped in closer to Regina, the sudden proximity going unnoticed in her anger.“Well, at least I’m not a jerk who lies to her fiancé, gets herself killed, and then leaves him to die in what may have been a loveless marriage!”  
  
Regina closed the distance between them, all limits of personal space forgotten until she was within a breath of the other woman.“I want you gone tomorrow.” Her voice was dangerously low as she spoke, the fury now burning brightly in her eyes.“This experiment is over.”

With that, she turned and stalked out of the room, disappearing almost immediately.Shaking both from her own anger and the now late realization of just how close she’d been to Regina, Emma let out a shaky sigh.Running a hand through her hair, she returned to the bar and fixed herself a strong enough drink to calm her nerves and help her push away the memories and feelings threatening to take over.

**XXX**

A few hours later and several more cocktails in, Emma found herself gazing out the back door of the Inn, sightlessly taking in the frozen snow covered landscape beyond.  Even the gentle clinking of glasses being cleaned by Granny in the adjoining kitchen didn’t shake Emma out of her thoughts.  
****

“Hey stranger,” Granny greeted gently, seeming to sense Emma’s turmoil.  
  
Sighing heavily, Emma shook her head before she pulled herself away from the door and walked into the kitchen.  
  
“I messed up,” she blurted without preamble.

Granny stopped what she was doing and turned to face her.  
  
“I’m sure it will blow over,” Granny reassured her.  
  
“I don’t know,” Emma shook her head in shame.“I just…I lost control.I haven’t been thinking about this as real, as someone’s life.It’s just Regina seems so…alive.”  
  
"She is alive,” Granny pointed out, “Just not in the traditional sense.”  
  
Emma smiled softly at that.“It’s not the easiest concept to wrap ones head around.”  
  
“No, it is not.” Granny agreed as she stepped closer to Emma, concern clear on her face.  
  
“I just- I wonder what she was like when she was alive.Was she just as stubborn?” Emma mused as she sat down at the kitchen table.“I mean, I don’t know how Robin put up with her.I don’t blame him for choosing Zelena.”  
  
Granny chuckled.“I’m sensing a bit of jealousy.”  
  
“Absolutely not,” Emma replied vehemently.She shifted uncomfortably under the older woman’s knowing gaze, crossing her arms over her chest in an unconscious effort to shield herself.“It doesn’t matter, she asked me to leave.”  
  
“Surely she didn’t mean it,” Granny asked, taken aback.  
  
“She did,” Emma confirmed sullenly as she refused to meet Granny’s gaze.“I always do this.I constantly sabotage myself.”  
  
Emma shrugged and rolled her eyes, trying to appear unaffected even though she could feel the telltale burn of tears at that back of her throat.She couldn’t remember the last time she’d allowed herself to cry and she blamed the swirling alcohol in her head for her sudden emotional response.Swallowing heavily, she continued to avoid Granny’s gaze, even when Granny moved to sit down across from her.  
  
“Emma,” Granny began, her reassuring tone causing Emma to finally look up at her.“It has been quite a while since Regina has had the pleasure of a fight with a beautiful woman.”  
  
A smile flashed on Emma’s face at the compliment but it didn’t meet her eyes and it was gone almost as soon as it had appeared.  
  
“Don’t give up on her,” Granny implored, a kind smile on her own face as she took in Emma’s slumped shoulders and hanging head.  
  
Emma nodded in acknowledgement but remained quiet as she worked to control her own emotions.As Granny fixed Emma some hot tea to help soothe her, neither of them heard Regina quietly let herself in the front door.Wishing for her own warm beverage to help shake off the cold of her walk outside, Regina slowly made her way down the main hall.She’d spent the better part of the night after her argument with Emma wandering the Inn’s grounds as her anger kept her warm.She’d only thought to return when the moon was high in the night sky and the chill was finally seeping into her bones.

She paused as she came upon the old upright under the stairs.Reaching out, her fingers brushed over the ivory keys before playing a single chord.As the sound rang out around her, Regina froze as she swore she heard the echo of laughter over it.Looking up, she was startled to see Robin standing at the end of the hall, watching her with a coy smile on his face.He was as handsome as she remembered and was smartly dressed in a well-fit tuxedo.  
  
“Robin?” she whispered, shocked.

Robin gave her the same cheeky grin and turned to walk into the kitchen.Finally seeming to get a grip on herself, Regina rushed to follow him but came to an abrupt stop when two sets of eyes stared back at her in confusion, neither of them Robin's.

“Regina?” Granny spoke tentatively, immediately noticing the pale tint to the other woman’s features.  
  
“Did you just…” Regina trailed off as she looked wildly around her.  
  
"Regina, are you alright?” Granny pressed as she began to stand.“Not to joke, but you look as though you’ve seen a ghost.”  
  
That seemed to get Regina’s attention and her brown eyes snapped to Granny and Emma, the former who was now standing and gazing at her with careful concern.Emma was staring at her curiously, her own eyes looking around as though trying to find whatever it was that so clearly had Regina spooked.    
  
“Never mind,” Regina muttered, realizing how out of sorts she must appear.“Goodnight.”  
  
Both women watched her turn out of the room, Emma catching the baffled look that took over Regina’s features just before she was out of sight.  
  
“Well that was strange,” Granny commented with a huff as she returned to her seat.“She looked like you during your first couple days here."  
  
With a roll of her eyes, Emma cracked a smile and returned to her tea.Granny wasn’t wrong, however.Maybe Emma wasn’t the only one being haunted by the past.

**XXX**

The next day, as Emma was quietly researching more history of the Inn in the living area, she couldn’t help glancing up every few minutes to stare at the wide front window.  Ruby had been right, the place needed a Christmas Tree.  She had yet to see or hear Regina after last night’s strange interaction and she sighed as she realized the other woman was likely still upset with her.  Emma didn’t blame her- she had said some unfair things.  Pushing that aside, she shut her laptop with a decisive snap and bundled up before heading out to her car.  An hour later, she slowly made her way back up the driveway to the Inn, a large fir tree firmly tied down to the roof of her car.  Pulling up in front, she quickly hopped out of the car, and excited smile spreading over her face.    
****

As she quickly ascended the steps to the porch, she paused as she heard her phone ringing in her pocket.Pausing, she pulled it out and looked at the caller ID, sourly noting that Gold was trying to get ahold of her.Contemplating for a moment, she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as she looked between her phone, the Inn and the tree still tied to her car.In a moment of either blind stupidity or brazen courage, she hit the decline button and sent Gold to her voicemail.Her smile widened as she put the phone back in her pocket and let herself into the Inn.Stomping her feet on the welcome mat just beyond the door, she looked around.  
  
“Regina?” she called, silence her only greeting.

Frowning, she proceeded upstairs, calling out for Regina once again when she reached the second floor landing.Still receiving no response, she moved to climb the stairs to the third floor but stopped when she heard a door creak behind her.Assuming it was Regina, Emma turned with a smile on her face.When the woman didn’t appear but the door remained cracked open, Emma rolled her eyes at the other woman’s dramatics.Apparently she still wasn’t speaking with Emma.Sighing, Emma walked towards the door, her smile disappearing from her face as she looked in the room and didn’t immediately see Regina.Frowning, she stepped into the room, wondering if perhaps Regina was in the adjacent bathroom.

Emma had no sooner crossed the threshold into the room when the door slammed shut of its own accord.Gasping, Emma jumped back to avoid being hit as it whizzed past her.Suddenly feeling bone-chillingly cold and unease roiling in her stomach, Emma launched herself at the door and tried to pull it open.Anger set in when she realized that it was locked and wasn’t about to budge.  
  
“Regina?!” she yelled as she banged on the door.“This isn’t funny!”

When Emma was again greeted by silence, she huffed in frustration and stomped over to the window.Pulling and pushing on it, she realized that it must have been painted shut at some point because it was just as secure as the door.She froze as the silence was finally broken by the tinkling of the hanging crystal lamp set on the dresser next to her and the creaking of the lighting fixture hanging over her.She turned, facing the room as her gaze was immediately drawn to the open bathroom door.Emma’s heart rate tripled and her anger melted into fear as she realized that something was floating in the doorway to the bathroom.It was dark and shapeless and unlike anything Emma had ever seen in her life. 

She struggled to keep her breathing as the thing shimmered and mere feet from her, dread settling like a rock in her stomach.

“Go away,” was whispered angrily across the space of the room and Emma yelped.  
  
Emma was frozen to the spot, her eyes wide with terror as she watched the thing seem to draw closer.Unable to speak or even scream, Emma was helpless to do anything but hyperventilate and shake with fear.She was certain she had never been as cold as she was right in that moment, her very heart feeling as though it were frozen despite how rapidly it was beating.Just as the thing was mere inches from her and she was certain she was about to die, the door was thrust open and Regina burst into the room.Concern and a bit of fear was etched on her face as her eyes swept the room.The instant the door had swung open, however, the thing had dissipated in front of Emma’s still wide and now glassy eyes.

Taking in Emma’s panicked expression, Regina crossed to her in just a couple strides and pulled her into her.She shuddered as she felt how cold Emma was despite the fact that she was still bundled in her winter coat, a hat, and gloves.She began roughly rubbing one of her hands up and down Emma’s arm while the other held her tightly against her.   
  
“Emma, are you alright?” Regina questioned even though she knew the answer was obvious.  
  
Emma shoved Regina away angrily, the wild panic in her eyes still present as she glared at the other woman.  
  
“You didn’t have to do that!”Emma snapped, fury overtaking her panic.  
  
“Do what?” Regina asked, baffled.  
  
“Scare me like that!” Emma yelled, not in the mood for games.“I get it.You want me out of here.”  
  
“I didn’t,” Regina assured her, the sincerity in her voice and eyes clear.“I heard you yell and came at once.” Emma stared at her, uncertainty clouding her features.   
  
Tentatively, she looked back over at the bathroom where she’d first seen whatever she had just seen.It was just a regular bathroom, no traces of anything malicious or dark.

“It wasn’t you?” Emma croaked as stared wide eyed at the woman mere inches from her.  
  
“No,” Regina reassured her earnestly, her hand coming up to gently brush away a tear that was rolling down Emma’s cheek.  
  
“What about the opening and slamming of the doors in my bedroom?” Emma asked as she struggled not to sink into the warmth of Regina’s hand on her still too cold face.  
  
“No,” Regina replied again with a soft shake of her head.  
  
“The voices?"  
  
“Were not me, I swear.”Regina rested her hand against Emma’s cheek as her thumb gently brushed away one final errant tear.She gazed at Emma with concern, noting that the other woman was still shivering.“Come on, Emma, let’s go downstairs and get you warmed up.”  
  
Emma violently shook her head, panic creeping into her features once more.“I don’t want to be in this house.”  
  
Grabbing hold of Regina’s wrist, she pulled her downstairs and out the back door.Snow had begun to fall heavily and had already coated the walkways with fresh powder.Ignoring it, and how cold she was, Emma released Regina’s wrist and Emma stormed ahead of her towards the garden.   
  
“There’s a second ghost,” Emma declared without preamble, the only explanation for what she had just experienced.“I can’t get you to move on, how am I supposed to get rid of a second one?”  
  
Once she’d reached the property limits, she turned to face Regina.Emma crossed her arms over her chest when she realized the other woman was staring back at the house in awe.   
  
“It’s extraordinary,” Regina breathed a smile ghosting across her face.  
  
“What?You never noticed?” Emma snorted in disbelief.“You never bumped into each other while haunting?”

At that, Regina finally tore her gaze from the house and looked at Emma.  
  
“I’ve had memories that seemed real,” Regina acknowledged, her eyes refusing to meet Emma’s.

“Maybe they were real,” Emma posited with a shrug.“Maybe they were ghosts.”  
  
“I’d like to think I know the difference,” Regina replied flatly, giving Emma a pointed look.   
  
Emma scoffed and rolled her eyes as she chuckled humorlessly to herself.“As if this Christmas couldn’t get any weirder.”  
  
Both paused as Regina glanced back at the Inn once more, Emma trying to look anywhere but at her or the Inn.   
  
“Look,” Regina began, hesitating as she caught Emma’s gaze.“I know I told you to leave-,"  
  
“Yeah, you did,” Emma cut in hotly, the memory of last nights argument still fresh in her mind.  
  
“I think you should stay,” Regina offered, her features apologetic.

“Really?” Emma asked, hope coloring her words.  
  
“Well, clearly, there’s more to my mystery than I knew,” Regina pointed out, her excitement barely veiled.Emma finally chanced a glance at the Inn, its charm still present even after the mornings events.Noting the forbidding look on Emma’s face, Regina smirked.“Perhaps your, uh, _tenacity_ can be of use after all.”

Looking back at Regina, Emma couldn’t help but grin at her.She had white flakes dotting her usually immaculate hair and a layer had settled on her shoulders in the short time that they’d been standing out side.Add that to the excitement that was shining in Regina’s eyes at the prospect of unraveling her own mystery and Emma found it impossible to say no to her despite the clearly hostile presence in the house.Shaking her head, she turned and trudged back up the path towards the Inn.Rather than going in, however, she veered to her right and walked around to the front of the house, Regina wordlessly falling into step beside her.If she was curious about Emma not returning to the house, she didn’t vocalize it.As Emma’s car came into view, she felt Regina stop.

“There is a fir tree atop your auto,” Regina blurted, clearly caught off guard at the sight.  
  
“Uh, yeah, it’s a Christmas tree,” Emma explained sheepishly, a blush instantly burning across her cheeks.“I figured you hadn’t had one in a while and, um, look, I just-I wanted to apologize for what I said.”

Emma turned to face Regina, hoping the other woman could see the truth of her words and understand how absolutely sorry she truly was for everything that she’d said last night.  
  
“Look, I…I crossed a line,” Emma stammered, her cheeks burning.“I’m sorry.”  
  
Regina’s features had softened as Emma spoke, an almost caring look entering her eyes.She nodded in acknowledgement of Emma’s apology.  
  
“Thank-you,” Regina murmured.She took in Emma’s relieved smile and couldn’t stop her own from spreading across her face.Looking beyond Emma, she walked past her towards the car.She called back over her shoulder as she went.“Shall we set up the tree?”  
  
Emma’s grin widened and she turned to help Regina pull the tree off the car and into the house.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mistakes are my own. Hella delirious on cold meds that literally aren't helping a bit.

**Chapter Eight**

Once they’d managed to pull the tree into the living area of the Inn, Emma and Regina had grabbed a quick bite to eat- at Regina’s insistence.  Emma, knowing she only had a limited window within which to actually enjoy food agreed under the stipulation that once they were finished, they would go searching for the Inn’s Christmas Tree decorations.  Regina had argued back that she would check Emma’s stitches first as they were due to be removed, and then they’d go hunting for the decorations.  Emma had begrudgingly agreed and so a few hours, several sneeze attacks from dust and cobweb covered boxes, a few less stitches, and a couple tumblers of cider later found the two of them happily planted in front of the tree.  Emma had opted to pull the decorations from their boxes and hand them to Regina, allowing the other woman to decorate the tree as she see fit.  
****

“So what’s it like, you know, when you’re…not like you are now,” Emma finished lamely, the alcohol causing her brain to struggle for words.

Smirking, Regina peered at her through the branches of the tree.  Rolling her eyes, Emma went back to fumbling around in the box before her.  When she realized Regina still hadn't answered, Emma peered up at her once more.  Concern flowed through her as she realized there was a pained look on Regina's face but before she could comment on it, it was quickly swept behind Regina's carefully constructed mask.  
  
“Like a nightmare that goes on forever,” Regina whispered, brutally honest.“I want to wake up, but I can’t.”

Emma frowned as she fumbled with the next decoration.“Except for 12 days,” she murmured more to herself.“Why only 12 days?Why Christmas?”  
  
“I don’t know,” Regina sighed as she finished hanging her most recent ornament and stepped back to look at the tree.Her eyes wandered over the tree and its now heavily decorated branches, the ornaments bringing up memories of Christmases long past.“You know, I haven’t had an actual Christmas in 95 years?Christmas was my favorite time of year.I’d almost forgotten.”  
  
Emma smiled warmly at her before stepping back to study the tree herself.“Christmas is my favorite time of year, too.I always make a point of getting a tree, even if it’s just me.”Bending down, Regina just barely caught what she said next even though it was under her breath.“And it’s always been just me.”  
  
Perplexed, Regina watched as Emma went through a box at her feet.“I find that hard to believe.”  
  
“Oh, believe,” Emma scoffed as she kept her gaze firmly in the box before her.

Regina stepped over to where she was and bent down to her level, waiting until Emma looked up at her.“The people of your time must be very foolish,” she reasoned, her voice soft but insistent.

Emma stared at her for a moment, her eyes drawn to the halo of light cast around Regina by the tree behind her.She looked ethereal and Emma was mesmerized.She found herself leaning forward, slowly closing the distance between herself and Regina.When she realized Regina was doing the same, Emma suddenly jolted back, a blush breaking out on her cheeks.She chuckled awkwardly as she stood, quickly putting more distance between herself and Regina.Walking back over to the tree, Emma struggled not to look at Regina as she also stood.   
  
“What?” Regina inquired as she walked around to face Emma on the other side of the tree.When Emma didn’t answer but chose to stare at the tree instead, Regina smirked.“Tell me.After all, I’ve been more than forthcoming with you.”  
  
Emma finally lifted her gaze to her, the inner turmoil evident in them.“It-It’s not them,” Emma stammered, unable to hold Regina’s gaze and instead choosing to focus on the decoration in her hand.“I mean, I want to be in love, you know? Like, really be…in love, but I don’t think I know how.”  
  
Regina smiled kindly in understanding as she watched Emma nervously fumble with the decoration in her hand.“It’s nota trait to be learned.”  
  
“I’m not so sure about that,” Emma mused as she set down her ornament and instead picked up the tree topper.She flattened out the angel’s halo that had become bent from years stored in a box.“My parents…they left me on the side of the road when I was a newborn.I spent my entire life in and out of different foster homes, never finding somewhere that felt like home.”   
  
Emma was careful to keep her eyes downcast, knowing she’d only find pity if she looked up at Regina and she couldn’t stand when people pitied her.She almost never talked about her past and blamed her sudden openness on the alcohol in her system.Her childhood had taught her how to be strong and independent and to never take anything for granted.People tended to see foster children as broken, but Emma had never held that view of herself or the other children around her.If anything, she felt she was better prepared to face the world when she ran away from her last foster home at 16.She wasn’t naive enough to think that the world owed her anything or would ever be kind to her and as a result, she’d built her own life on hard work and tenacity, as Regina had put it earlier.   
  
“Long story short, I think I may have been a bit of collateral damage,” Emma muttered.  
  
Finally looking up, she was surprised that she didn’t see a trace of pity in Regina’s expression, just quiet understanding.Regina was looking at her as though she were anything but broken and that alone filled Emma with relief that she rarely felt around people who knew of her past.Emma grappled with the unfamiliar feeling, warmth blossoming in her chest as she watched Regina slowly but deliberately step closer to her.

“Emma,” she began softly as she stopped in front of the blonde.“I’ve only known you for a short while now, under unique circumstances, but I feel quite confident that you have a wonderful capacity for love.”  
  
Emma was temporarily speechless, having never had anyone say anything such as that to her before.She looked up at Regina, their height difference reversed as Regina was still in her heels and Emma was barefoot.Emma’s breath hitched as it altogether stopped at Regina’s proximity and Emma could hear her heart pounding in her ears.Seeming to come to her senses, however, Emma mentally shook herself out of the moment and discreetly eased herself back.

“Well, thank-you,” she murmured.“For that, you get to put the angel on top of the tree.”  
  
Handing it over, Emma let out a shaky breath as Regina stepped away.The swirl of emotions and feelings was beginning to overwhelm her and she was more than a little confused, and scared, of them.She watched as Regina retrieved a small step stool and set it down close to the tree.Climbing it, she delicately leaned in towards the tree and gently placed the angel atop it.Satisfied, she retreated and stepped down off the stool, moving it back and coming to stand next to Emma as she gazed at the now finished tree.  
  
“You know, if we don’t get this figured out, if my theory was wrong and nothing changes, I’ll make sure you always have a tree for Christmas,” Emma promised quietly, glancing over at Regina.

Regina was at a loss for words, overwhelmed with gratitude.Rather than say anything, she tentatively reached across the small space between them and gently took hold of Emma’s hand.When Emma didn’t pull away, she laced their fingers together and and Emma seemed to automatically lean into her.Emma sighed in contentment, happy to just let the moment be and not worry about what it meant or what came next.Turning back to look at the tree once more, now lit and painstakingly decorated, she reasoned that it was the best tree she’d ever had for Christmas.

**XXX**

“No!” Emma protested over her toothbrush and a mouth full of paste.  
****

“I insist,” Regina argued calmly as she stood in the doorway to Emma’s room.

After they’d packed the boxes up and moved them back upstairs, she’d caught Emma yawning nearly continuously.Looking at the time, Regina was startled to see that it had become far later than either one of them had realized and suggested Emma head to bed.The blonde had simply nodded, the exhaustion beginning to show in her face.Emma emerged from her bathroom, her toothbrush in her hand.

“I don’t care,” she stated simply now sporting her customary tank top and shorts.

“We are talking about your safety here,” Regina reiterated as she stepped into the room and closed the heavy wood door behind her.   
  
“I’ve slept alone in this room a few days now,” Emma pointed out as she finished brushing her teeth and walked back into her room.When she realized Regina had invited herself in and closed the door behind her, she faltered but tried to quickly cover it up with a false show of bravado.“Nothing scary…or too scary has happened.”  
  
“Circumstances have change,” Regina interjected, trying her best not to be annoyed by Emma’s insistence that she would be fine alone.She’d seen how scared the woman had been earlier.She’d be damned (again) if she allowed that to happen a second time.“We now know of the other presence.”

Walking further into the room, she walked past Emma and to a corner that was sitting next to the bed.Picking it up, she carefully placed it between the bathroom and the bedroom.

“I will be in this chair, in this corner, if anything untoward happens,” Regina vowed as she turned back to face Emma.

“You don’t sleep.”  
  
Regina rolled her eyes and silently begged for patience.

“I will not hover over your bed, if that’s your concern,” Regina replied flatly.Turning, she picked the chair up and faced it away from the bed, into the bathroom.“In fact, here.Your privacy is assured.”  
  
With that, she sat, signifying there would be no further argument and that Emma would not win regardless.Huffing in frustration and shaking her head, Emma turned and started walking to her bed. She could hear the triumphant smile in Regina’s voice as she called over her shoulder.  
  
“Goodnight, Miss Swan.”  
  
Emma sunk down into her bed, suddenly too tired to care who was in the room as long as she got to sleep in peace.Though her heart was thumping in her chest at Regina’s proximity, she pushed any feelings associated with it down, choosing to ignore them for now.After all, any feelings for a person who was dead 353 days a year and human for only 12 days at Christmas was a whole level of complicated that Emma wasn’t sure she could handle.Emma banished the thought as soon as it entered her mind.Regina had just been so real the past few days that Emma was finding it easier and easier to forget that in a few days time, she would disappear again for a year.Thinking back over their day together though, Emma found it impossible to wipe the smile from her face.  
  
She watched as Regina produced a small book from some hidden pocket somewhere and settled down more fully in her chair.The low light from Emma’s bed side table cast a warm glow over the room and Emma suddenly had an overwhelming feeling of being safe and something else indescribable.Before she could think too much on in, she pushed that out of her mind as well.She chose to focus on a topic she figured would be safer for the time being.

“I’m sorry that the trust wants to sell the Inn,” Emma quietly apologized.

Regina gently set her book on her lap and pulled her glasses off, seeming to take a moment to gather herself.

“Any chance that you might be able to buy it?” The hope tinged words betrayed the careful stoicism on her face.

“I don’t make enough money for that.”Emma smiled wistfully, though Regina couldn’t see.At her words, Emma saw the faintest droop of disappointment lower the woman’s nearly perfect posture.Before she could think about it, she found herself blurting the next thing that came to her mind.“I wish I could.”

“I wish you could, too,” Regina murmured before Emma had a chance to regret her very telling words.   
  
A pregnant pause settled around them as Regina replaced her glasses and went back to her book.Whether it was the intimacy that the small room offered them, the protection of the night, or the cider still thrumming in her veins, Emma found herself emboldened in the next moment as she shifted closer to the end of her bed and Regina.

“I saw that uniform hanging in your room the other day,” she commented nonchalantly as she gauged Regina’s reaction.“Is that from the war?"  
  
Regina didn’t immediately respond and Emma could tell she was struggling with whether or not she wished to speak on the subject.Feeling guilty for prodding at what were likely sore memories, Emma tried to backpedal.

“I’m sorry,” she began, embarrassment burning up her neck.“I didn’t mean to pry.You don’t have to-,”  
  
“No, it’s alright,” Regina assured her in a low tone.Emma watched as she set her book on the nearby dresser and turned in her chair to look at Emma.“Yes, I was a nurse during the Great War.”  
  
_That explains the stitches_ , Emma thought as she quietly waited for Regina to continue.A thousand emotions passed across Regina’s face before her lips settled into a determined line.Regina pushed herself out of the chair and walked to the end of Emma’s bed where she began pacing.Emma sat up and the covers pooled at her waist as she watched Regina’s patterned movements.

“I was young, full of patriotism, and dumb,” Regina snorted humorlessly.“I enlisted as soon as America entered the war and I was sent over seas almost immediately.“I thought…everyone thought, that victory would be swift and all but guaranteed.After the first year, we realized how wrong we’d been.”

Regina’s features darkened as she seemed overtaken by memories from long ago and Emma worried that she’d touched upon something that she had no business going near.

“Regina, it’s ok,” Emma reassured her.“You don’t have to tell me any of this.”  
  
“I know,” Regina nodded, “But I think I’d like to.”  
  
“Ok then,” Emma replied and settled back against her headboard.  
  
Regina resumed her pacing.“I was stationed in France primarily, although I was sent out to the Western Front numerous times for months at a time during my service.”  Regina paused, as a visible shudder ran down her spine.“It was truly a godless place, that front and those trenches.The attacks were near constant and as the years stretched with little to no progress, the methods of warfare changed and became more gruesome.”  
  
Emma motioned the other woman over, scooting over to make room for her to sit on the edge of the bed.Regina sat lightly, facing Emma though her eyes remained distant as they watched memories play out in her mind.“I will never forget the first time the Germans used Mustard Gas.The screams…,” Regina trailed off, unable to finish.

Sensing the other woman was about to spiral into her memories, Emma reached out and placed a hand over hers, squeezing it.Seeming to come back down to herself, Regina look down at their joined hands and brushed a grateful thumb over the back of Emma’s hand.

“Technology and medicine were not what they were today.We lost a good many men to injuries that would have been simple to treat today, not to mention diseases like Trench Fever, Typhoid, and Influenza.”

“I know that you would have done the best you could,” Emma declared with unwavering certainty.She couldn’t picture as anything less than her stubborn self when facing down impossible odds.“I’m sure you frustrated death more than he would have liked.”

A small smirk was the only confirmation she needed.  
  
“If I can…I wasn’t intentionally trying to look, but I did notice a scar on your right side.”Emma felt a blush creeping up into her cheeks as Regina looked at her questioningly.Emma squirmed under her gaze, “Did that- Did that come from the War?”

Regina’s eyes were distant once more when Emma finally managed to look up at her.Her right hand had fallen to her right side, lightly massaging the spot in question.  
  
“One of our wounded soldiers, he was shell shocked, or I suppose you would call it Post Traumatic Stress Disorder today.He was confused, believed he was in an enemy camp and not a hospital.He was out of his mind with fear and waving his handgun.”Regina’s brow furrowed as she recalled the event.Emma gave her hand another encouraging squeeze, reminding her that she was still there.“I don’t know what made me do it, but I decided to rush him.I thought I could get to him before he could pull the trigger.He must have heard me because at the last second he turned and fired from the hip.

“The damage was done, however, and my momentum carried me into him as I fell.He lost his grip and was immediately subdued.”Deeper sadness than Emma had ever seen on Regina’s face settled in her features as she took a deep breath and seemed to steel herself.“The surgeon did the best he could but as I said, medicine was archaic by today’s standards.I ended up with too much damage and was told I’d never be able to have children.”  
  
Understanding lit Emma’s face as all the pieces from their argument the previous night fell into place. 

“That’s why you were so upset last night,” Emma guessed.  
  
“Zelena gave Robin what I never could have,” Regina murmured sadly.“He claimed it never mattered to him, but I’d seen him around children.He was made to be a father.It explains his quick marriage to her.He was likely better off when I was killed.”

“Regina,” Emma chastised, immediately moving closer to the woman and pulling her hand into her lap and covering it with her second hand.“I didn’t know Robin, but everything you and Granny have told me about him tells me that he loved you implicitly, without limits.I don’t believe for a second what you just said is true.”  
  
Regina continued to stare down at their joined hands, emotions flitting across her face.  
  
“Perhaps,” she finally conceded.“After the war, I returned home to find my father had passed as I was on my way back and though it was trying for us, Zelena and I managed to keep the Inn out of our mothers hands.”  
  
Noticing the look on Emma’s face and anticipating the follow up questions, Regina smiled softly at her. 

“My mother was not very motherly towards us growing up.She was cold and aloof, often utilizing…heavy handed tactics against Zelena and I to get us to do what she wished.”  
  
“Your father allowed that?” Emma asked, astonished.

“He was as afraid of her as we were.”Regina smiled sadly as her thumb absentmindedly began rubbing circles into the back of Emma’s hand.“He was a kind man and he loved both Zelena and I deeply.We never truly blamed him for not standing up for us.He was a victim, same as us.”  
  
Emma refrained from commenting, the least experienced person when it came to family matters.She was lucky if when she got placed in a house, she had her own bed in a room.Usually, she’d just been thrown on a couch or a sheet in a corner, the foster parents all knowing it was a temporary arrangement and not even bothering to give her a bed.Sensing herself delving into a darker place than she wanted to visit, she squeezed Regina’s hand instead.  
  
“Thank-you for sharing all of that with me.”Emma gave Regina a soft smile, her hand tingling where Regina’s thumb brushed over the back of it.“I know that was difficult.”  
  
“I didn’t mind,” Regina admitted, “You make me feel…comfortable.Safe, if you will.”  
  
Without even thinking, Emma felt herself nodding. 

“Despite these weird circumstances, I feel the same,” Emma agreed.  
  
“Well in that case, you should sleep fitfully tonight knowing I’m here,” Regina declared as she gently pulled her hand free and stood.“It is late and I can see you are tired.Please, get some rest.”  
  
Emma smiled ruefully at the other woman as she watched her take her place in her chair once more.Settling into the bed once more, she pulled the covers over her and instantly felt exhaustion pulling at her.  
  
“Goodnight, Regina,” she murmured as her eyes fluttered closed.  
  
“Goodnight, Miss Swan.”

**XXX**

The house was deathly quiet and Regina heard the clock on the mantle in the living area chime signifying it was 3am.  Regina was nearly finished with “A Christmas Carol” and glanced over her shoulder as she heard Emma stirring in the bed behind her.  She watched as Emma shifted around and the covers fell off her before she settled once more.  Intending to simply cover the woman again, Regina stood but froze as the sound of the wind whistling into the room caught her attention.  She could swear she heard her name whispered in the same noise and instead of moving towards Emma, she moved to the door.  Cracking it open and sticking her head out, the noise grew louder and Regina distinctly heard her name being called.  
****

Regina paused, struggling to decide what to do.She wanted so badly to follow the wind and the whispers in hopes that it would help her understand the mystery surrounding her.The probability that it was Robin who was calling to her was more seductive than she was willing to admit.On the other hand, she had made a promise to Emma that she would stay by her side all night and keep watch.Regina had no guarantee that whatever other spirit that was inhabiting the Inn wasn’t trying to pull her from the room to get Emma alone.Torn with indecision, Regina stood in the doorway.It wasn’t until she heard Emma stirring behind her once more that she decided she valued a promise to the living over her curiosity of the dead.

Shutting the door, Regina turned back into the room to see that the covers had completely slipped from Emma’s body.Smiling to herself, Regina quietly walked over to the bed and gazed down at the blonde.Her face was free of its usual guarded look and Emma appeared much younger when she was asleep.Carefully, Regina picked up the covers and pulled them back over Emma.Emma unconsciously snuggled deeper into them as Regina took up her place once more.Cracking open her book, she noted that the whispering had stopped.Hoping she hadn’t just missed an opportunity, Regina settled in for the rest of the night.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still sick over here but doing my best to muddle through. All editing mistakes are my own.
> 
> Also, I have read all your comments and I truly appreciate every one of you that has dedicated their time to reading this story. I hope it lives up to your expectations. 
> 
> Enjoy.
> 
> (Tumblr: Phoenix_Rises_Again)

**Chapter Nine**

Emma blinked against the bright morning light as she slowly dragged herself out of sleep.Rubbing her eyes, she stretched the sleep out of her limbs as she yawned.Opening her eyes, she saw an empty chair back in its place next to the dresser.Emma paused a moment as her brain caught up and she realized that Regina was gone.Sighing, she rolled over in bed, content to lay in the comforting warmth under the covers for a few more moments.She smiled when she saw Regina standing with her back turned, staring out the window. 

“How did you _not_ sleep?” Emma joked, her voice gravely from sleep.

Regina smirked and turned to face her, her book still in her hand.Emma was surprised to see that Regina appeared lighter somehow, almost less guarded.

“Uneventfully.”  
  
Emma smiled wider at that, the quiet morning light casting a comforting glow over the room.Emma found herself wishing that all of her mornings started in a similar manner.Freezing as the thought struck her, Emma scrambled to make sense of that train of thought.Seeming to sense the shift, Regina cocked an eyebrow in her direction.Before she could question her however, both heard a car pull up outside.Regina turned to look out the window, recognizing Granny’s beat up pick-up.

“Granny is here,” she advised Emma quietly as she turned and moved towards the door.“I’ll leave you to get ready.”

Just as the door was about to shut behind her, Emma came to her senses as she scrambled to sit up.

“Regina!” she called as she crawled to the end of the bed.When the other woman stuck her head back in, Emma was suddenly hyper aware of what a bedraggled mess she probably looked like with her hair sticking up at odd angles and her tank riding up.“Uh…Thank-you.For staying last night.”

Regina gave her a warm and genuine smile.  
  
“Think nothing of it,” she dismissed gently and retreated once more, the door quietly clicking shut behind her.

Once she was gone, Emma hurried to get ready for the day, showering and dressing quickly.By the time she’d opened her door once more, she could smell breakfast being cooked below.Her mouth watered at the distinct smell of bacon and what she suspected were pancakes.Grabbing a sweater, she wrapped herself up as she walked downstairs.She was surprised to find Regina at the stove, making the food herself as Granny pulled fruit out of the fridge.She set strawberries next to a cutting board on the island and gave Emma a pointed look.

“Good morning,” Emma greeted as she took her cue and walked over to the island with a smile. 

“Emma, I see you successfully made it through another night,” Granny commented wryly.  
  
“It’s especially astounding when you realize that Regina here isn’t the only ghostly inhabitant of this Inn,” Emma commented as she picked a knife up and began slicing strawberries.

Granny turned around, a plate of pancakes in her hand dangerously close to meeting the floor.

“Two?” she spluttered, “There are _two_ ghosts?”  
  
“Yeah,” Emma responded nonchalantly with a shrug.“Any idea who the other one might be?”  
  
Granny was still staring at her with a shocked look on her face, her mouth hanging slightly open as she worked to process the new information.Thankfully, she managed to set the pancakes she was holding down on the island- unharmed.

“No,” Granny marveled, her brain finally seeming to catch up.“If anything scary ever happened, I always assumed uh…”  
  
She shot Regina an apologetic look and shrugged her shoulders.Catching the look, Regina didn’t even bother protesting and simply nodded acceptingly.

“Understandable,” she replied good-naturedly as she flipped a pancake with experienced ease.

Emma chuckled as she threw chopped strawberries into the waiting bowl in front of her, stealing one as she did so.

“Okay, so let’s review what we know and what we think we know,” Emma decided.“There are two ghosts.One- unidentified, one- currently making pancakes.There’s a good chance the one making pancakes was murdered.”  
  
“I’m still hoping for ‘tragic fall’,” Regina quipped, a smirk on her face.

“Oh yeah, ever the optimist,” Emma joked with a chuckle.“I think, in this case, you’re wrong.There were two suspects: Zelena and Robin, although, their motives still remain unclear.”  
  
Granny took in the playful banter between the two and the clearly happier terms they were choosing to exist in.It was a far cry from how she’d left them just little over a day prior.Granny didn’t miss the shared look between the two, a coy smile on Emma’s lips and a smirk tugging at Regina’s.Granny raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment, her own lips pulling into a smug grin as Emma stole another strawberry from her pile.

“We should also consider Cruella De Vil,” Regina pointed out.

“Who?” Emma queried, her brow furrowing when she didn’t recognize the name.  
  
“She was what you’d equate to a gangster nowadays,” Regina explained as she focused on not burning the food.“She’s the one that Mal and I did rum runs for until I quit.She was a heartless person.”  
  
“You quit?” Granny blurted as her head whipped around to look at Regina.  
  
“I was in over my head,” Regina revealed, shame making her head hang.

“Fine, three people then,” Emma amended, brushing over the suddenly awkward feel of the room.“Where were you as of your last memory?”  
  
Granny and Emma watched as Regina’s gaze grew distant, suddenly caught up in memories nearly a century old.A look of extreme focus scrunched up the features of Regina’s face as she absentmindedly prodded at the pancakes in her pan thinking.After a moment, Regina finally spoke.

“In the forest, beyond the manner.”Regina’s voice was distant, as though she herself were back in the very woods she spoke of.  
  
“And who was with you?” Emma pushed gently.

“I was alone.”  
  
“Hmm.”Emma hummed, stumped.“What about Mal?”  
  
“I left her in Montreal with De Vil’s people so I could make it back to Robin by Christmas Eve.”A shadow of regret passed over Regina’s face as she lowered her gaze once more.Then, quietly, “I almost succeeded.”  
  
Regina grew silent, a wistful expression taking over her features as she pushed bacon around in the pan.The sizzle of fat cooking was the only sound as Granny and Emma both waited patiently for her to finish.  
  
“I even saw him,” Regina revealed, a small smile pulling at her lips now.

“Robin?” Emma asked, her brow rising.Regina had never mentioned seeing Robin the night she’d been killed.

“Yes.In the doorway.Right before I…”Regina trailed off as a perplexed look crossed her features.Emma and Granny again watched in silence as her hand suddenly came to the back of her head.It brushed over a spot there and Regina’s eyes widened almost comically as she spun to face Emma and Granny.“I was struck from behind!”  
  
“Huh,” Emma grunted, her brow furrowing.

“I never remembered that before,” Regina murmured as she raised her hand to her head once more.“It’s…unnerving.”  
  
“Who attended the dance?” Emma queried, her brain running a thousand miles a minute with the new information Regina was giving her.

“Why?” Regina asked, suspicion clear in her tone.

“Because whoever was there couldn’t have hit you from behind,” Emma explained patiently.

“Then it couldn’t have been Robin,” Regina realized, a relieved smile spreading across her face.She walked over to stand across from Emma at the Island.“Though, who knows how angry he would have become if he truly realized the depths of illicit activity I was engaged in while in Montreal.”  
  
“Stop, please, don’t kid yourself,” Emma snorted.“He loved you.He knew.He was probably cursing you the whole time-,” 

Emma froze mid slice, an idea suddenly dawning on her.All thoughts of chopping up strawberries cast aside, she absentmindedly pulled her knife up and began waving it in Regina’s direction.

“Wait, how long were you gone?To Canada?” Emma rushed to clarify even though her mind was clearly twenty steps ahead.

“A couple of weeks, maybe a few days less,” Regina provided, clearly not understanding what Emma was getting at but also easing herself away from Emma’s errant knife waving.

“Two days less?” Emma pressed, excitement lighting up her features.

“Perhaps?” Regina answered as she thought about it.“We left on the…12th?”  
  
“And you came back late on the 24th,” Emma finished, nodding to herself.“That’s 12 days, Regina.That has to be significant.”  
  
“Yes, but how?” Granny suddenly piped up and both Regina and Emma startled a bit at her voice, both having nearly forgotten she was there.  
  
“I don’t know,” Emma replied, “But there’s something there.”  
  
Before they could discuss it further, they were interrupted by the ringing of Emma’s phone.Setting down her knife and wiping her hands on a towel, she retrieved it from her pocket and frowned as she saw Gold’s name pop up on the caller ID.Huffing in annoyance, she grabbed her jacket on her way out the door and quickly wrapped herself in it before stepping outside.

“Hello?” Her voice was tentative as she prepared herself for the tongue lashing that was sure to follow.

“Emma, I need you back in Boston.Now.”Gold’s tone was clipped and tinged with anger.

“Sir-,” Emma began, readying herself for an argument.

“ _Now_ ,” Gold commanded, not giving Emma a chance to make excuses.“Immediately.At once.Got it?”  
  
“But, sir-,” Emma spluttered as she stood on the porch.

“Vacation time is over, dearie,” Gold sneered.

“I’m not-,”  
  
“Senator Morton died yesterday and it’s all hands on deck, including mine,” Gold cut in again.“That definitely means yours.Get back to Boston today, got it?”

“Got it,” Emma replied, defeated.

“Good.”

With that, Gold hung up the line, the click making Emma flinch.Sighing heavily, Emma turned and walked back inside.When she reached the kitchen, she couldn’t bring herself to look at Regina. 

“I have to go back to Boston,” Emma murmured.

“What?Right now?” Granny stepped closer to her, a confused look on her face.When Emma remained quiet, Granny sighed heavily.“Well, we certainly understand that you have a life outside of this Inn and this town, don’t we, Regina?”

At that, Emma finally looked up.Regina was staring at her, no anger discernible in her expression but her face was carefully guarded in a way that Emma hadn’t seen since her first couple days at the Inn.A pit formed in her stomach at the thought of leaving the poor woman at the Inn, mystery still unsolved.

“Regina, I-,” Emma began, but was silenced by a quick shake of the other woman’s head.

“You’ve given us more than enough to go on here, and for that I will be eternally grateful.One could not expect you to stay here forever.” Regina reasoned, but her voice was flat and guarded.

Regina’s tone and carefully stoic face made Emma’s heart ache for reasons unknown, and she struggled to maintain her composure.At Emma’s guilt-ridden look, Regina smiled kindly and stepped towards her until she was standing right in front of her.Gently, she reached up and took hold of Emma’s shoulders, squeezing them.She waited until Emma looked up at her before smiling at her once more.

“It’s alright, Emma,” Regina whispered, the same kind smile stretching across her features once more.“Go.I will be fine.”  
  
Emma nodded, her throat tight with emotion as she realized she was really going to leave this incredible woman behind, doomed to repeat this horrid cycle again.Emma knew if she stayed standing in that kitchen in close proximity to Regina with the woman’s hands resting softly on her, she would never leave.Forcing herself to go, she gently extricated herself from Regina’s grasp but gave her hand a final squeeze before recusing herself upstairs to begin packing.Done in minutes and wishing it had taken longer, Emma hauled her suitcase downstairs and toward the front door.Once there, Granny stepped out of the living area, sadness lining her features.

“Hey,” Emma greeted lowly, unable to stop herself from looking around for Regina, disappointed when she was no where to be found.

“Hi,” Granny returned.They stood in awkward silence for a beat before Granny sighed and put her hands in her pocket.“She may not say it, but she’s counting on you to return.”  
  
“I will,” Emma promised, suddenly certain that no matter what, she couldn’t leave for good.“We’ll figure this out.”  
  
“That, Miss Swan, has been my hope since you first disregarded my warnings to leave.” 

A mischievous smirk spread across Granny’s features as puzzle pieces fell into place for Emma.  
  
“Sneaky!” Emma accused but the malice of the term was undercut by the smile spreading across her face. 

Both she and Granny chuckled before Emma picked her bag up once more and proceeded out the front door.She faltered for a moment when she saw Regina standing by her car, waiting.Hastily throwing her bag in the back, she turned and faced Regina while Granny wandered over to her own truck and pretended to be busy with something on it.Emma frowned when she saw longing flash across Regina’s face but before she could comment, it was pulled behind the woman’s formidable walls.Emma watched as she instead pulled a gold pocket watch out of her jacket pocket.Holding it between them, she reverently ran her thumb over it.

“It belonged to my father,” she explained quietly.“His name is inscribed inside.”

Running her thumb over the casing again, she held it out to Emma.Gently taking it, Emma ran her own thumb over the intricately designed exterior.  
  
“It won’t open,” Regina informed her, frowning slightly.“It hasn’t.Not since I returned.”

Emma looked down at it again, examining the edges and finding no defects or explanations as to why that might be.

“It may very well disappear as soon as you cross the property line, but I’d still like you to have it.”

Emma’s eyes widened in surprise as she looked up at Regina.

“Regina-,”Emma began but was stopped by the suddenly desperate look in Regina’s eyes.

“So you won’t forget me,” Regina murmured as she reached out and gently curled Emma’s hand closed over the watch.

“Impossible,” Emma whispered as she struggled to fight the sudden burning in her throat.

Smirking, Regina brushed her thumb over Emma’s fingers one final time before dropping her hands.  
  
“Nothing is impossible, dear.I’m proof of that.”  
  
Pausing for a moment, Emma struggled to rein in her emotions.The naked desperation in Regina’s eyes was tearing her apart and Emma struggled to convince herself again why leaving was a good idea.She’d never felt this way about anyone in her life, determined to muddle her way through it with everyone held at arms length.The kinship she felt with Regina was inexplicable and left Emma both frightened and excited.Leaning forward, Emma finally felt as though she could speak without her voice wavering.

“I _will_ be back before Christmas,” she vowed.“I promise.”

The desperate look in Regina’s eyes faded to one filled with a quiet hope.They stood staring at one another, both slowly leaning forward.Emma found it impossible to look away when Regina was looking at her the way she was right now, her walls down and every part of her open and full of hope.Emma seemed to realize their sudden proximity, however, and immediately backed up and turned away.She heard Regina sigh behind her but when she glanced over her shoulder, the woman was wearing a resigned but understanding smile.  
  
Emma clambered into her yellow bug, the door creaking shut behind her as Regina looked on sadly.Starting the car, she gave Regina one final wave as she slowly pulled away.She stared at Regina in the rearview, the other woman watching as she left.As she neared the property line, she dug the pocket watch out, praying that it wouldn’t disappear.As she crossed through the wrought iron gates at the end of the driveway, she let out a breath of relief when the watch remained heavy in her palm.Smiling, she settled in for the long drive back to Boston.

**XXX**

As night fell over the Inn, even the warm glow of lights from the Christmas Tree couldn’t ward off the distinct feeling of emptiness from within its walls.  Regina topped off her a glass of cider as she patiently waited for Granny to make her next move.  Granny, for her part, was seriously studying the chess board before them, having realized a couple moves ago that Regina was likely going to sweep her again baring some miracle.  Sighing, Granny finally chose her bishop, moving it into a more defensive position around her king and queen.  As she sat back and lifted her own tumblr to her lips, her phone, which she’d placed next to the chess board earlier, suddenly began buzzing and lit up.    
****

The name ‘Hunter’ is appearing on your special device,” Regina commented as she contemplated her next move.

“It’s a cellphone,” Granny repeated for about the thousandth time.Reaching over, she hit the decline button.“I’ll call him back later.”  
  
“The modern woman’s approach to courtship is very peculiar,” Regina mused barely containing her smirk.  
  
“It’s not courtship, it’s friendship,” Granny insisted.“He’s probably calling about the Christmas Eve dance.”  
  
“While I admit my prolonged isolation has left me rusty on the nuances of human interactions, he clearly likes you…and you clearly like him.”Regina skillfully moved her Queen into place, recognizing the game would be done in just a few more moves.“Which makes your inaction all the more baffling.”  
  
“So what should I do?” Granny scooted closer, the game all but forgotten for her.“If I ask him out and we like each other, then what?”  
  
“Well, you were married once,” Regina pointed out.“I assume you would know.”  
  
Granny rolled her eyes as she gave Regina a pointed look.“Long term, I mean.This situation with you…it’s complicated.”  
  
“This is your life,” Regina argued, moving another piece into position.“Don’t use me as an excuse not to live it.”  
  
Giving Regina a dubious look, Granny drained the rest of her tumbler.“I could say the same about you.”  
  
Regina chuckled, though her smile didn’t meet her eyes.Granny watched as a darker look seemed to overtake her features.She’d been quiet, brooding almost, since Emma had gone.Frankly, Granny had been surprised when she’d agreed to come out of her room and play a game of chess with her.She’d understood as soon as the cider made an appearance.Regina often had a way of numbing herself to her emotions.

“What person would want a woman in my position?”  
  
The question was quietly whispered into the space between them, as if Regina hadn’t actually wanted Granny to hear her voicing it.Staring dumbfounded at the other woman, Granny shook her head.  
  
“Emma,” she supplied, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.Regina scoffed and sat back in her chair as she watched Granny make her next move.“At least that’s the impression I get, don’t you?”

“Well, Emma is a remarkable woman,” Regina agreed as she watched Granny fall right into the trap she’d set.“If my circumstances were different, I could imagine.”  
  
Granny stared at her thoughtfully, not entirely convinced.In all the time that she’d known Regina, she’d never seen her light up the way she did around Emma.Even now, as she denounced herself but spoke of the blonde, there was a subtle upward tug to her lips.But wishing for something and actually achieving the reality of it certainly were two different things.

“But I wouldn’t do that to her,” Regina continued as she moved her Queen to corner Granny’s King.“It would be unfair.”  
  
Granny sat back as Regina tipped her King over, a heavy sigh leaving her lips.Whether it was for her most recent loss at the hands of Regina or because of the tragic circumstances of Regina’s half life, Granny couldn’t be sure.  Before she could argue that Emma was an independent adult who could make her own decisions, Regina continued speaking.

“Plus, we don’t even know if she’ll return,” Regina added as she sat back, a triumphant smirk on her lips.  
  
Granny chuckled at that, picking her King up and beginning to reset the board.Looking up, she noted Regina’s sudden and almost hopeless look.Reaching over to cover Regina’s hand with her own, she forced the other woman to look up.

“She’ll return,” Granny promised, undeniable certainty ringing in her voice.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We're getting close to the end here, folks. I updated the chapter count to 12 and I finished the whole thing today. I need to go through and do some major editing because my head is so congested I'm pretty sure the last couple chapters aren't even in English. I don't like the ending so there may be a length of time between now and when it gets posted.
> 
> Anywho, here's the next installment. 
> 
> *Insert lawyer mandated disclaimer here*

**Chapter Ten**

**  
** The trip home from Storybrooke had been grueling.Between traffic and a sudden pop up snow squall, Emma was beyond frustrated by the time she finally reached her office hours later.She’d been gone over a week and the memos and mail piled on her desk reminded her that the world had not waited for her while she’d been lost in Maine.It was nearly night time and the office was quiet as most people had already left for the evening.Sighing heavily, she flopped down into the chair behind her desk, forcing herself to take advantage of the quiet and start organizing things from most important to least. 

After a couple hours and several paper cuts later, Emma declared herself done for the evening and tiredly dragged herself home.Her apartment looked the same as when she’d left it.She’d never gotten around to getting a Christmas tree before she’d left for Storybrooke and the apartment itself, which had once felt like home, was cold and empty to her now.Looking around, she set her bag down and made her way to her bathroom in hopes that a hot shower might make her feel better.Standing under the hot spray, Emma let her mind wander back to Regina and what she was likely up to.She smiled when she pictured the woman sitting in front of the fire, cider and book in hand, her glasses perched on her nose.

Climbing out of the shower, Emma didn’t feel any better and after a quick bite to eat, she settled into her bed.The apartment was silent around her and she found herself missing the creaking of the Inn around her as it settled for the night.Tossing and turning, Emma didn’t fall asleep until the wee hours of the morning.Her alarm startled her awake and she realized that Regina was down to only a few days before Christmas.The stress Emma immediately felt at that thought alarmed her, but she pushed it away and forced herself to get ready for work.

A few hours later, as she was debating the merits of ripping all the innards from the copier machine- which was refusing to do the one thing it was built for- Gold finally found her.

“So all that time and you didn’t accomplish the one thing that I asked?”His tone was tinged with anger and Emma scrambled to think of some explanation.

“Well, I’ve been working with the ghost,” she began tentatively.“Regina is her name.We’ve been trying to figure out why she hasn’t crossed over to the other side in hopes that once she actually does, I would be able to bring in the appraisers and we could sell the darn thing.”  
  
Emma watched as a pained look crossed Gold’s face and he closed his eyes in frustration.   
  
“Just say you were skiing,” he muttered as he shook his head at her.“There’s nice skiing there.”  
  
“I wasn’t skiing,” Emma shot back indignantly.

“That’s a shame, dearie,” Gold sighed.“You need to live a little.”  
  
When Emma looked as though she was seriously considering his words, Gold hastened to clarify his statement.

“But not until after you get the Inn appraised.”  
  
Emma watched as he turned and stalked away.She could practically feel her chances at her promotion diminishing and was surprised at how little she seemed to care about that anymore.Still, she couldn’t help calling out at the man’s back as he retreated.

“I’ll get it appraised!”  
  
“You’d better!”

**XXX**

As the morning stretched into afternoon, Emma found herself unable to concentrate on any of the paperwork for Senator Morton’s estate.  Her attention had been pulled every few minutes to the boxes piled in one of the corners of her office, set to the side earlier in the day.  Sighing, Emma stood and moved over to them, the photo of Regina from the news article about her death sitting on top, staring at her.  Suddenly coming to a decision, she picked one of the boxes up and walked it to one of the smaller conference rooms that they rarely used.  Setting it on the table in there, she went back and retrieve the second box, setting it next to the first.    
****

A few hours later, as people began wrapping up and leaving for the day, Emma was still pouring over all the paperwork for the Storybrooke Inn.She’d since pulled everything out of the boxes and spread it before her as she searched for any detail that would give her a clue as to who Regina’s killer may have been.Coming up empty, Emma let out a frustrated groan as she dropped her head into her hands.At this rate, she’d never find out who killed Regina, which meant that Regina would likely never move on.If she was being honest with herself though, Emma wasn’t entirely upset about that fact.She froze as the thought struck her, the very idea of it shaking her to her core.Before she could contemplate further, she was startled by a soft knock at the door.Looking up, she smiled when Belle popped her head in.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you all afternoon,” Belle remarked as she let herself in.“This came for you just after lunch.I didn’t realize you were holed up in here or I would have brought it to you earlier.”

“I’m sure it’s no big deal,” Emma waved as she took the large manila folder from Belle.“I just needed more space.”  
  
“I can see that,” Belle nodded as her eyes swept over the covered table.“Do you need help with anything?”  
  
“I appreciate the offer, but I think I’m actually done for the day,” Emma smiled at her warmly, wondering how someone so sweet ever fell for someone like Gold.“Thanks for bringing me this.”

“No problem.Have a good night, Emma.”With that, Belle turned and left, the door clicking shut quietly behind her.

Looking down, Emma realized the file was records she’d requested on her second day in Storybrooke once she’d realized Regina was a ghost.Excitedly pulling open the file, she spread its contents out in front of her.Most of it was old tax records but Emma sorted through it until she came across Regina’s death certificate and Zelena and Robin’s marriage license.After looking at both briefly, the next piece of paper caught her eyes. _Certificate of Birth._ As she quickly read over it, her eyes widened at the information before her.Standing, she pushed all the paperwork together half-hazardly, being sure to keep the birth certificate separate as she threw everything back in boxes.As she practically ran out of the room, she nearly collided with Gold.

“Ah, Emma.Just who I was looking for,” Gold commented, graciously ignoring Emma’s near brutish behavior.“The appraiser just sent word. He has completed the walk through of the Stroybrooke Inn.Good job.”  
  
Her mind still spinning from what she’d just discovered, Emma didn’t immediately process what Gold had just told her.Once her mind caught up, her brow furrowed in confusion.

“Come again?”  
  
“That means there’s a little over a week to sell the place,” Gold plowed on, ignoring the confused look on her face.“You’ll need to work on this exclusively, 24/7.”  
  
“What about Christmas?” Emma was more than a little perturbed that Gold just assumed she’d be willing to work through the holiday.  
  
Stopping short, Gold turned around to face Emma as she barely avoided colliding with him a second time.

“What about it?” He asked, the look in his eyes daring her to challenge him.

Not willing to just roll over and never one to back down from an argument, Emma drew her self up and hoped she looked more confident than she felt.

“I was planning on going back to the Inn,” she declared, her voice stronger than she’d expected.

“Your work there is done,” Gold replied flatly as he shook his head.

“But-,”  
  
“The trust is counting on us,” Gold continued, not allowing Emma to speak.“I am counting on you.You need to be here for the Christmas Eve party.I’ll be announcing your promotion.You deserve it.”  
  
With that, he gave Emma a hearty pat on the shoulder and brushed past her.She watched him go in a daze, her mind spinning at the news.  
  
“Priorities, dearie!”The parting was yelled over Gold’s shoulder as he pushed out of the main door to the office. 

Emma was left standing in the entryway, her mind still reeling as Gold’s last words rang around her.After years of practically killing herself at the firm, she was finally getting everything she’d ever wanted.She had thought that she would have felt better when she’d reached her ultimate goal, but as she stood in the entryway, she realized she felt emptier than ever.Looking down, she realized she still had the birth certificate in her hand and as her other hand went in her pocket, it brushed against Regina’s pocket watch.Priorities, indeed.

**XXX**

  
Regina silently paced the property line at that back of the Inn, deep in thought.She’d been arguing with herself all day about whether getting the Inn appraised for Emma had been the right move.Her mind had decided that it was, that Emma could not keep wasting her life with the Inn, and consequently, Regina.Her heart was unwilling to let the blonde go, however, having grown inexplicably fond of her over the last week or so- despite how irritating she could be.Throwing one last longing look at the world beyond the property, Regina turned and walked back into the garden.The wind buffeted against her, but for once, Regina was glad she couldn’t truly feel it.

Looking up at the Inn before her, Regina realized that she couldn’t bring herself to head inside.Last night had been nearly as torturous as the time she spent moving among the world as a spirit.Despite her claims that all she wished for was solitude, Regina had never felt so alone in the Inn as she had once Emma had left.She had to find a way to let the blonde go, however.She refused to allow her to waste her life on a fruitless endeavor that would only wind up hurting both of them in the end.Sighing, she laid down on the bench, watching as day turned into night and the snow clouds cleared enough that she could see the stars.She watched them twinkling above her, her mind wandering.Regina stayed outside all night, not even moving as the sun broke the horizon and dawn was upon her.

After eleven days, Christmas Eve was finally upon her.Seeing no point in moving, as she would only cease to exist in less than 24 hours anyways, Regina sighed and continued to stare at the sky.She’d never before minded going back to the spirit plane before, but things had changed the moment Emma had entered her life.She’d spent the majority of her night torn between hoping that Emma would keep her promise to return, but also trying to convince herself to be happy for the blonde if she did not.Regina wasn’t one to wallow in self-pity, but she found that she was doing an astounding job by the time the sun had fully risen over the walls of the garden.

It was then that Regina heard the faintest notes from a piano floating across the open space.Sitting up, her brow furrowed in confusion as she looked around.Seeing nothing, she wondered if she was just hearing things and the Inn was playing with her once more.When the wind came again, this time carrying the distinct sound of “12 Days of Christmas” with it, Regina knew she wasn’t hearing things.

“That’s new,” she muttered to herself as she rose and began following the sound back to the Inn.Letting herself in, she slowly wandered over to the piano, a smile instantly breaking over her face at the sight of a familiar blonde playing.Regina watched as Emma glanced briefly over her shoulder but continued playing through the final notes of the song.As it ended, Emma slowly pushed herself around on the bench until she was facing Regina, a broad smile on her face as well.

“You came back,” Regina beamed as she moved to lean on the wall behind her, suddenly shy.

“Priorities,” Emma replied, smiling.

“Well, you must be starving,” Regina guessed, knowing Emma would have had to have travelled all night.

“You read my mind,” Emma laughed as she stood to follow Regina into the kitchen.

Emma sat down at the table after pouring herself a cup of coffee, watching as Regina plated some fruit.Sitting in the kitchen while Regina worked, Emma smiled into her mug, the utter domesticity of the moment warming her more than her coffee ever would.She’d had a lot of time to think in the car ride back up and she’d come to realize that while their relationship was unorthodox, Emma owed it to herself not to sabotage herself for once.She was working on actually being alright with what she felt for the other woman rather than being wracked with anxiety about “what ifs”.Emma hummed contentedly, finally feeling as though a piece of her that she’d never even known was missing, was back.She blushed as Regina threw a questioning look over her shoulder and though she was trying to be more honest with herself, she wasn’t quite ready to voice her feelings to Regina.

“So…any more ghost sightings?” Emma hoped her sudden question would dissuade whatever queries Regina had.

“Only when I look in the mirror,” Regina replied with a smile as she set two glasses of orange juice down on the table.

Emma breathed a mental sigh of relief that the other woman seemed content to let the previous moment pass.Chuckling, Emma sat up slightly as Regina turned back to the plates of food.

“Well, that’s good news,” Emma decided.After a moment, Emma felt her smile fade as something else occurred to her.“You got the Inn appraised.”  
  
“I did,” Regina confirmed, her smile faltering a bit.  
  
“Why?” Emma asked, trying to keep her voice light.  
  
Regina turned, gently putting the plates of food down on the table.Emma smiled when she saw fruit and a bear claw on her own plate.

“It’s what you wanted,” Regina murmured, nothing but kindness in her eyes.  
  
Emma smiled softly and pulled her plate towards her while Regina turned back to start putting the extra fruit away.Pulling off a piece of the bear claw, Emma chewed on it thoughtfully as she wondered whether to bring the other thing on her mind up.    
  
“You know…um…,” Emma started, not sure how to broach the subject but knowing she owed it to Regina. “I found something while I was gone.”  
  
When Regina turned to look at her, gaze inquisitive, Emma stood and walked towards the living area.Stopping at her bag on the way, she pulled out the birth certificate she’d found.Seeing Regina walking up behind her, Emma motioned to the couch in the living area.When they sat, she hesitantly handed the piece of paper over to Regina.

“Regina Anne Mills-Locksley,” Regina read off the name on the birth certificate, her jaw clenching.“They named her after me.”  
  
As Regina went to place the certificate on the coffee table in front of them, frustration clear in her features, Emma placed a hand over hers to still the movement.Looking at her, Emma gave her a reassuring look that she was not here to drive the barb about Robin and Zelena’s marriage in any deeper.

“Look at the father’s name,” Emma pleaded quietly.

Regina picked the paper back up, doubt clouding her features. 

“William Scarlet,” Regina whispered, her voice trembling.“So it’s true then.  She wasn’t Robin’s.”  
  
“Apparently, William was Robin’s half-brother.They’d crossed paths after you’d already left for Montreal and he and Zelena had a one night stand,” Emma divulged, noting the relieved look on Regina’s face.“William skipped town the next day and was never seen again.When Zelena found out she was pregnant shortly after, she knew that she would be shamed for having sex out of wedlock.At that point, you’d already been found and Robin offered to marry her to legitimize the baby.”  
  
Regina’s eyes had grown glassy as Emma had spoken and Emma could see the relief shining through them.She squeezed her hand, letting Regina know that she was there for her.

“The marriage was just a cover,” Emma assured her.“At least it was for Robin.”

“I…I don’t know what to say,” Regina mused, her voice still heavy with emotion.“I’ve been angry for so long…for the betrayal.But it was the opposite.”  
  
Emma reached up to cup Regina’s cheek, her thumb gently brushing across her face as she wiped a tear away.Sensing Regina on the verge of breaking down, Emma leaned in and pulled Regina into a hug.The other woman’s arms wrapped around her immediately, holding on tightly as though she never wanted to let go.They sat that way for a moment, each wrapped in the other until they heard the front door opening.The sprang apart, doing their best to look like they hadn’t just been in the middle of an incredibly intense emotional moment.Granny smiled in greeting when she saw them, a box full of Poinsettia plants in her hands.

“Emma! You made it!” she exclaimed happily.

“Yep, as promised,” Emma replied as both she and Regina stood.

Ruby stumbled in through the door behind Granny, her hands also filled with boxes of decorations.

“I’d say just in time!” she managed to say as she struggled with the awkward boxes.

“The caterers will be here at 4,” Regina supplied, smirking at the woman’s struggles.

“Oh, great!We should be all done decorating the ballroom by then,” a look of determination crossing her features as she stared at Granny pointedly.

Taking the hint, Granny rolled her eyes but followed behind Ruby as the younger girl disappeared into the dining room.Regina turned to face Emma as she notice the blonde smiling at her with a perplexed smile.Regina sighed, massaging the bridge of her nose as she tried to ward off a headache.

“Uh…what’s going on?” Emma inquired, her eyebrows raising at Regina’s tired look.

Rather than answer, Regina waved at Emma to follow her.She walked across the hallway towards the dining room where Granny and Ruby had just disappeared.They could hear a flurry of activity even before the adjoined ballroom came into view.Emma threw Regina a questioning look but stayed quiet as snippets of Granny and Ruby’s conversation reached them.

“How many poinsettias did you bring?” Ruby asked, her head in a box.

“Three,” Granny replied, setting her box on the floor.

“Oh, good, because we could use some over there on the floor,” Ruby commented absentmindedly as she continued digging through her box.Standing back up, Ruby triumphantly raised a couple bottles of liquor over her head before setting them on the small table in front of her.“Yes, just over there.A bit of red will spruce things right up.”  
  
Suddenly it dawned on Emma and she looked up at Regina excitedly.

“The Christmas Eve dance is going to be here?” she practically squeaked, the childlike excitement clear on her face.

“Well, Ruby’s pub was too damaged to host this year,” Regina replied nonchalantly, a smile tugging at her lips.“I offered the Inn.It’s right that it should be here again.I’ve missed it.”

Regina found herself staring at Emma as the blonde watched the commotion in front of them.The excitement on Emma’s face made the next couple hours that were sure to induce a headache all worth it.

“I’ve missed so many things,” Regina murmured, freezing as she realized she’d voiced the thought out loud.  
  
Rather than the panic or disgust she expected on Emma’s face, however, Regina was surprised to see a shy smile creep across her features.The blonde continued to smile at her until Granny called them both over to help with the decorations.Sighing, Regina just reminded herself that it would all be worth it come this evening.There was no place she’d rather spend her remaining few hours than with Emma, even if it was to decorate.Once they were finished a few hours later, the ballroom and dining room now looking spectacularly ready for a Christmas party, Granny and Ruby excused themselves to go home and get ready.Emma excused herself shortly after they left and gave Regina a smirk before disappearing upstairs.Regina heard her door close and quickly made her way over to the couch once more.Retrieving the item that she’d specifically asked Granny for, she hastily made her own way upstairs, more excited than she’d been in nearly 95 years.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know it has been delayed in coming but the next chapter is finally here. I'm still not satisfied with the very last chapter in this fic but I'm actively working on it (and some writer's block). I am hoping to have this finished by next week, if not faster. 
> 
> I think y'all will be happy to finally get some answers here about Regina. Hope it stands up to your expectations!
> 
> As always, I don't own the characters, the plot, or the dialogue. ABC/Disney/Lifetime have respective rights. Fucking lawyers.

**Chapter Eleven**

Emma stared at herself in the full length mirror, nervously smoothing out non-existent wrinkles in her red princess cut dress as the low sounds of laughter and talking filtered up from downstairs.  She’d pulled the dress out of the back of her closet in Boston, the thing left over from some holiday office party she’d never attended a few years prior.  Honestly, she’d been surprised it had still fit but was happy with the way it seemed to bring out subtle curves she didn’t even know she had.  Smoothing down a few fly aways from the braid she’d managed to wrap her hair into, Emma exhaled shakily as a soft knock sounded on her door.  With one last look in the mirror, she slowly walked over to her door.  
****

When she pulled it open, she couldn’t keep her mouth from falling open in shock as Regina stood before her.   She was in a deep purple dress that stopped just above her knees but flowed loosely from her waist down.Over top of the fabric, a lighter purple lace ran the length of the skirt.Though modest and covering her chest for the most part, the dress had done a fantastic job of emphasizing each of Regina’s many womanly curves.The same light colored lace ran across her shoulders and down just past her elbows.Her dark hair had been swept back from her face in some complicated yet sophisticated up-do that Emma couldn’t believe she’d managed to accomplish on her own.Emma realized it was the first time she’d ever seen Regina in something other than clothes from the time period when she’d been alive and she felt her heart instantly hammering in her chest.  Once Emma had managed to tear her eyes away from roaming over Regina’s body, she looked up at the other woman and realized Regina had been regarding her in much the same fashion.Seeming to catch herself now that Emma’s gaze had managed to rest on her face, Regina blinked a few times and closed her mouth.

“You look beautiful,” Regina breathed, and Emma could hear the nerves in her voice.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Emma shot back with a small smile, trying to soothe both their butterflies.  
  
“Really?” Regina asked as she looked down at herself and self consciously smoothed her hands down the front of her dress.“I had Granny retrieve it for me.She assured me it would be appropriate for this time period.”  
  
Emma chuckled and placed a hand on the other woman’s forearm to stop her from obssessing.

“Truly, you look amazing,” she reassured Regina, and was pleased to see Regina relax at her words.

Stepping aside, she beckoned the woman in, reaching up and carefully pushing an errant strand of hair back behind Regina’s ear.When her gaze met Regina’s she was surprised to see something akin to pain in the woman’s eyes before Regina blinked and a smirk was pulling at her lips.

“Better?” Regina asked ruefully, the lightest blush dusting her cheeks.

“You’re still missing something,” Emma decided and turned to her dresser.

She gently picked up a small box that Regina hadn’t noticed.It was wrapped in a gold colored paper with a red ribbon wrapped around it.

“I don’t have a gift for you,” Regina revealed, panic suddenly creeping into her eyes.

“Just open it,” Emma insisted quietly, a shy smile on her features.

Regina reluctantly took the box from her grasp, slowly undoing the ribbon and pulling the top off.Inside, nestled on red tissue paper, sat her father’s pocket watch.Smiling, she gently lifted it out of the box and lovingly ran her fingers across it.She gasped when she hit the release and it immediately popped open.Tears immediately sprang to her eyes as she read her father’s name.

“Henry Valet Mills,” Emma murmured as she cupped Regina’s now shaking hands.

“I haven’t seen that in a long time,” Regina whispered as she ran her thumb over the inscription.

Looking up at Emma, tears barely contained, she found herself at a loss for words to describe how much Emma’s gift meant to her.Sensing her struggle, Emma just gave her a soft smile as her hand came up to cup Regina’s cheek.Emma’s thumb began to brush across her cheek softly as she leaned in towards Regina, her eyes fluttering closed as she was inches from her.At the last moment, just as their lips were about to touch, Regina turned her face and Emma’s lips landed on her cheek.The kiss was brief, Emma startled into backing away at the unexpected movement.Emma tried to conceal the hurt in her gaze as she searched the other woman’s face for answers.Finding none, she began to panic that she’d been misreading the signs the entire time she’d been around Regina. 

“Everyone’s waiting,” Emma blurted as she tried to keep the anxiety out of her voice.

Regina cleared her throat and for the first time Emma saw her looking at her with pity and regret.That look cut her deeper than anything Regina had ever said or done before, and Emma quickly looked down.Clearly, she’d been way off with the signals she’d thought Regina had been telegraphing to her.  Something akin to a stone settled in the pit of her stomach and Emma shuffled her feet as she silently berated herself. 

“Um, shall we?” Regina asked tentatively, the sudden awkwardness in the air around them slowly choking her.  
  
Emma gave her a tight lipped smile and nodded as she brushed past the other woman and made her way to the stairs.As she reached the ballroom, she was delighted to see the large number of people that had shown up on such short notice.It was enough to distract her from the awkwardness of moments prior even though she could feel Regina close behind her.

“Ah, there you two are,” Granny called to them as she noticed the new arrivals.  
  
“This place looks amazing,” Emma complimented as her gaze travelled around the room. 

Apparently Granny and Ruby had added some additional decorations while she’d been getting ready.Strands of lights hung tastefully across the ceiling as garland and ribbons twisted around them.A few more poinsettias had been added and the splash of color they added seemed to bring the room alive.

“All thanks to Ruby,” Granny supplied.Gesturing at Regina she continued, “She’s actually the one who picked out your dress.”  
  
“And may I say you look absolutely stunning in it.”Everyone turned to see Ruby walking up behind them, drink in hand and a broad smile on her features.“I knew purple was your color.”  
  
“It seems you were spot on, Ms. Lucas, thank-you,” Regina replied graciously.

“Of course,” Ruby replied with a smile.Then, pointing to the other side of the room, “The bar is set up over there, help yourselves and enjoy!”

And with a final wave, she was gone, quickly disappearing in to the crowd.Granny shook her head but a smile was tugging at her lips. 

“Where’s Hunter?” Regina asked, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“Um, uh…” Granny stammered, caught off guard.“He’s…over there,” she finished lamely, pointing towards a handsome older gentleman currently dancing with a woman on the other side of the room.

Giving Granny a smirk, Regina shook her head slightly but then held her hand out to Emma.Surprised, Emma naturally brought her own hand up to lightly place it in Regina’s.When Regina inclined her head towards the dance floor, Emma smiled and nodded.Casting a look at Granny as if to say, ‘ _see how easy that was’_ , Regina led Emma onto the dance floor.They easily fell into a rhythm with the slower song, their feet moving without either one having to think about it.Emma was suddenly grateful for the ballroom dance lessons she’d been forced to take when she’d joined the firm.Gold had wanted to ensure each of his employees could woo potential clients should the need arise.

“Whoever buys the Inn,” Regina suddenly said, shaking Emma from her thoughts, “Be sure there is a clause in the contract that requires them to host this dance every year.”  
  
Emma’s face fell at the mention of the Inn being sold, guilt immediately flooding her system.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized sincerely.“We need more time.”  
  
Regina smiled at her though confusion was plain to see on her face.

“We have the evening,” she reminded Emma, not understanding.  
  
“No, I mean…We need more time,” Emma tried again, hesitant to explain after Regina’s earlier brush off.“We failed.”  
  
“We didn’t fail, Emma,” Regina softly assured her.“Not at all. I’m among the living again, and that’s thanks to you.”  
  
Realizing that Regina was merely grateful to have been brought out of her self-imposed solitude and was not expecting anything more than that, Emma smiled happily at her.As they continued to move across the dance floor, Emma forced herself to push her guilt away and the anxiety of each minute ticking past.She wanted to enjoy these last few hours that she had with Regina.Regina seemed to come to the same realization and unconsciously pulled Emma closer to her.For a few moments, they were the only two in the room, lost in each other’s gaze.The moment was broken however, when Graham sidled up to them and patted Regina on the shoulder. 

Regina, looking at Emma to ensure she’d be ok, reluctantly released the blonde so that Graham could cut in.Emma threw one last look at Regina as she walked back towards Granny and then fell into step along side Graham.He was not as good a dancer as Regina had been, but then, Emma was no gem herself.As they danced, Regina made her way back to Granny, a sly smile creeping onto her features as she turned and faced the room.

“It appears the man you were not courting is being courted by others,” Regina advised, glancing at the older woman.  
  
“Thanks for the update,” Granny replied flatly as she watched yet another suitor take up with Hunter.  
  
“Granny, you’re the one who told me that things are different now,” Regina began gently.“One way or another, you and I will both have to move on.”Regina turned to face Granny, an earnest look in her eyes.“Well, right here, in this moment, it’s time to try.”  
  
Granny sighed heavily, her gaze still following Hunter as he moved across the dance floor.Seeming to come to a decision, Granny drew herself up to her full height and smoothed her hands over her dress.

“Screw tradition,” she muttered as she suddenly propelled herself towards the man in question.

Regina watched on with a smile on her face as Granny seemlessly cut in and she and Hunter settled into a rhythm.When Regina heard Hunter guffaw with laughter at something Granny had said, Regina knew they would be alright.As she stood and watched the room, her gaze fell to Emma once more and watched as she and the Sheriff laughed about something as they moved.Regina smiled, happy to see so many people enjoying the Inn and the dance once again.She felt more full than she had since she’d died and come back her first time.Regina started when all of a sudden, she felt a hand wrap around hers.Looking down, she found her hand empty, but she knew she hadn’t imagined the sensation.Looking around the room wildly, her eyes landed on Robin across the room.  He wasn’t dressed in a well tailored tuxedo and appeared to be searching the room for someone.Stunned, Regina watched as Zelena approached Robin and laid a hand on his shoulder.All the noise from the current festivities seemed to fade into the background as Regina was suddenly tuned in to only Robin and Zelena.

“It’s nearly midnight,” Zelena insisted, a hard edge to her voice.“I told you, Robin, a leopard can not change its spots.”  
  
Robin spun on Zelena, shaking her hand off in the process and suddenly looking furious.

“Regina is not a leopard, Zelena,” Robin sneered.

With that, he turned and began walking towards Regina.Helpless to do anything but stand and watch, Regina swore his eyes flicked to hers as he passed.She watched as he gathered up his jacket and shrugged it on before he disappeared out the front door.As she watched him go, she missed Emma’s concerned look from across the room as Graham continued to spin her around.She watched Regina suddenly leave the room and make her way towards the front door.

Regina made her way on to the porch behind Zelena and Robin, watching at Zelena failed to call him back inside.Robin walked to the railing along the edge of the porch and looked out on the woods before him.Realizing that neither one of them seemed to be able to see her, Regina stood silently as she watched the living memory play out in front of her.Zelena came up to stand behind Robin as he stared angrily at the woods.

“She promised me that she’d be here by Christmas Eve,” she heard Robin mutter sadly.

Zelena shook her head in frustration, clearly tired of having the same argument.

“A promise is only as good as the character of the woman who makes it,” she proclaimed.

“I believe in her,” Robin insisted.

Regina glanced towards the Inn as a chorus of people singing the 12 Days of Christmas filtered through.She couldn’t immediately tell if it was from the memory or from the present day people inside but she soon had her answer.

“Do you hear that song, Robin?” Zelena asked, frustration still clear in her voice.“12 Days.That’s how long she’s been with Mal breaking the law.That’s how long she’s lied to you.”  
  
Regina felt her blood beginning to boil at Zelena’s words, her anger turning her vision red.They’d never had the best relationship but Regina couldn’t believe that Zelena would ever denounce her the way she currently was.

“That’s how long she’s put herself before you,” Zelena continued, her tone begging Robin to see reason,“Before everyone, as she always does.”  
  
Robin remained silent, but Regina could clearly see the muscles of his jaw clenching.Regina recognized it as his tell that he was angry, but whether it was because Zelena’s words were getting to him or because he was upset with Regina, she couldn’t be sure.

“12 Days is long enough for a woman to have learned her lesson and repent her mistakes,” Zelena hissed.“But she is not here.She has not learned.She will _never_ learn.”  
  
At that, Robin finally snapped and turned on Zelena, fury clear in his expression.

“She will learn!” he snarled.He turned back to the woods and then, calmer, “I know it.”  
  
“You ask for a miracle.” Zelena’s voice had lost some of its steel after Robin’s outburst.

“Then a miracle it will be,” Robin concluded quietly.“It’s Christmas, Zelena.What better time for a miracle?”

Regina looked down in shame, the realization that even through everything, Robin had so clearly loved her and believed in her.She was suddenly ashamed of the person she’d allowed herself to become over the last 95 years.Seeming to sense that she’d gone too far, Zelena placed an apologetic hand on Robin’s shoulder.When he looked back at her, he saw the same desperation in his own eyes reflected in hers.Zelena pulled him into a hug, his arms encircling her immediately.When they pulled back, Zelena cupped his cheeks and peered up into his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, and whether it was for her words or that Regina wasn’t there with them, he couldn’t be sure.He pulled her back into a hug regardless, both sensing they needed someone to lean on in that moment.

Instantly, everything that Regina had seen as she’d stood in the woods upon her return made sense.Despite Zelena’s strong feelings for Robin, there had never been an affair.Regina was immediately sure that neither Robin nor Zelena would ever do that to her.Gasping, Regina suddenly found herself standing back in the ballroom, the past fading away and the present taking over once more.Shaken, Regina tried to get her bearings as the moment of her death flashed in her mind once more.The pain was just as potent as it had been that night and she raised her hand to the back of her head.

Emma’s voice whispered in the back of her mind, their conversation from the kitchen a few days earlier running through her thoughts.

 _“Who?”_ Emma’s voice prodded, _“Who wasn’t there?”_

“Cruella De Vil,” Regina muttered, her head still spinning.

_“Would she have actually done it herself, though?”_

“No,” Regina realized, “She would have sent someone else.Someone who knew my route…”

Regina’s eyes widened as the last piece of the puzzle fell into place.As she looked up, she saw Mal standing across the ballroom, a bloody, jagged stone clenched in her hands. 

“…Because it was her route, too,” Regina whispered as Mal looked up at her, eyes hard.

Regina stared at her with wide, disbelieving eyes, watching as she dropped the bloodied stone from her hands and disappeared through the wall behind her.Emma, catching sight of the look on Regina’s face, spun herself to try and see what had drawn the other woman’s attention.Seeing nothing but empty space, she turned around in time to see Regina hastily pushing through the crowd and out of the room.Worried, Emma excused herself and moved to follow Regina.

When she found her, Regina was determinedly walking up the stairs, her face tilted up as though looking for someone.

“Mal?” she called out to the space above her.“I know, Mal.I know.”  
  
Emma’s brow furrowed as she moved to climb the stairs behind Regina.She’d never seen Regina act as she was and she was starting to get worried.Reaching the top of the stairs, she reached out to the other woman and placed her hand on her forearm.Regina didn’t even react, so caught up in looking around her for something Emma couldn’t see.

“Regina, what’s going on?” Emma’s voice was shaking, Regina’s behavior beginning to freak her out.

“It was Mal,” Regina revealed breathlessly, “She’s the second ghost.She’s the one.”

Emma quickly looked around her, the gravity of Regina’s words sinking in.She suddenly had goosebumps cropping up as her breathing increased and her heart thumped in her chest.

“Aren’t you?” Regina yelled out, her voice echoing in the hall around them.

“How do you know?” Emma asked quietly, still throwing glances around her and being sure to stick close to Regina.

“I saw her,” Regina responded, glancing back at her for a second.“I saw Mal just now.”

Emma reached out and grasped her hand, squeezing it reassuringly and letting Regina know she was there for her.Regina flashed her a quick grateful smile before turning to look around once more.

“You had a rock in you hand.The one you used to kill me,” Regina called out once more.

“But she was your cousin,” Emma started, shaking her head as her brow furrowed.“Why would she-,”  
  
“I had no choice,” a new voice spoke up, startling both Regina and Emma.They spun around to find Mal standing behind them, sorrow etched into her features.“You shouldn’t have quit, Regina.Cruella was afraid you’d tell.”  
  
“I wouldn’t have,” Regina argued, betrayal seeping across her own features as she walked towards Mal.

“I know,” Mal agreed sullenly.“But De Vil, she didn’t believe me.She told me I had to stop you or else she would.”  
  
Regina’s face contorted in fury as she continued stepping towards Mal.Understanding that this was a long awaited conversation, Emma hung back near the top of the stairs.She worried her lip as she watched Regina, the anger coming off of her in waves as she stalked towards Mal.

“She said she’d go after my family if I didn’t.Aurora…,” Mal trailed off and her now glassy eyes pleaded for understanding from Regina.“I couldn’t risk it.”  
  
“Aurora had just been born,” Regina mused quietly, suddenly seeming to realize the impossible position Mal had been put in.

“She was my everything,” Mal continued sadly.“I had to protect her.”  
  
Some of the anger had melted from Regina’s face as she contemplated Mal’s words.Emma watched as Regina struggled to come to terms with her cousin’s choice to murder her.The betrayal by her own cousin cut deep and she felt the pain in her chest as acutely as though the woman had stabbed her.

“Why is this happening?”Emma’s question rang out before she’d had a chance to stop herself, but she didn’t shrink under Mal’s gaze when her attention was directed towards her.“Why haven’t you moved on?”  
  
“Where else would I go?I murdered someone,” Mal hissed furiously.

“She’s afraid of judgement,” Regina realized.“Our souls are connected.”  
  
“As long as you stay here, I stay,” Mal confirmed.“You’re my anchor.”  
  
“You’re the one who chases people away,” Emma began, suddenly furious.“You make sure she’s always alone.”

Regina had taken several steps forward, her gaze now focused on the doorway behind Mal where Robin had suddenly appeared.He was smiling knowingly at Regina and watched as Emma took several angry steps towards Mal.

“You killed her and cursed her to this purgatory!” Emma yelled, her own anger surprising her but propelling her forward nonetheless. 

She pulled up short when Regina’s arm shot out in front of her, preventing her from moving any further forward.When she looked at the other woman, perplexed, she saw gratitude in Regina’s eyes but the dark haired woman just gave her head a subtle shake as if to say, _I’ve got this_.Emma gave her a reluctant nod and turned back as Mal advanced on them instead.

“No!That’s not true!” Mal exploded as she stalked forward, stopping only when she was right in front of Regina.“I don’t know why you’re stuck here, Regina, I swear.”  
  
“No,” Regina murmured, her gaze still firmly fixed on Robin.“I know.”

Turning to look at Emma and realizing that she couldn’t see Robin, Regina quickly explained.

“She’s not why I’m here.”Turning back to face Robin, Regina followed what she knew to be true in her heart.“It turns out its not a curse after all.It’s a miracle.Robin’s miracle, for me.”

At Robin’s subtle nod and secret smile, Regina knew she was right.Finally dragging her eyes from Robin, Regina looked at Mal, all previous hints of anger gone.

“If fear is what’s keeping you here, Mal, then I forgive you,” Regina offered, sincerity ringing in her voice.

“What?”Mal breathed, clearly unable to believe what Regina had just said.  
  
“I’ve been angry for a long time,” Regina began.“It did me no good.And who is to say that I wouldn’t be exactly where you are right now had I not been given a chance to learn.I don’t have a right to judge anyone, even you.”  
  
“No,” Mal argued, still unable to believe what she was hearing, “After what I did to you, I kept you here."  
  
“ _I_ kept me here.This is my doing.”Turning, her eyes fell on Emma who was still watching the exchange nervously and a wide smile spread across Regina’s lips as her eyes softened.“It turned out to be a blessing.It just took me a long time to realize that.”  
  
“I’m…,” Mal started, the single word pulling Regina’s attention away from Emma.“I’m sorry.”  
  
“I know,” Regina acknowledged as she held her hand out, a peace offering.

Staring at it, Mal hesitantly reached her hand own out and grasped Regina’s forearm.Regina pulled her in to her, no ill-intent in the action. 

“Don’t be afraid,” she begged Mal as she hugged her cousin fervently.“Have faith.”  
  
“Thank-you,” Mal murmured back as her whole body seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

With that, Mal disappeared before them, a subtle shift in the energy around them letting them know that she had truly gone this time.Startled, Regina looked up to see if Robin was still standing in the doorway.Finding it empty, she lowered her eyes in disappointment.

“I can’t believe she killed you,” Emma muttered behind her.

Turning, Regina found the blonde with her arms wrapped around herself, hugging herself. 

“I may have done the same, had someone threatened my family or my child,” Regina argued, not unkindly.“As I said, I can not judge and there is no use in being angry any longer.”  
  
Emma nodded, seeming to understand that Regina didn’t want to dwell on it.“You’re still here,” Emma remarked.“I guess she wasn’t the one keeping you here after all.”  
  
Regina nodded as she tried to decipher the emotions swimming across Emma’s face.She could sense disappointment as well as relief, and what she thought might have been hope.

“Well, as long as I’m here, we might as well enjoy the time we have left,” Regina suggested as she held her hand out, a playful smirk tugging at her lips.

Emma looked at her for a moment before silently taking her hand and allowing Regina to guide her back downstairs and into the fold of the party.As Regina spun her around on the dance floor, Emma tried to keep her worry at bay.Whatever the reason for Regina’s continued presence, she was content not to question it for the moment, simply happy they could spend a bit more time together.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright kiddos. This is the final ride on this one. Still not completely satisfied with the ending, but if I don't post it, I'll just keep editing it until it isn't even recognizable. Hope it has lived up to your expectations. Feel free to yell at me in the comments or on my tumblr. Appreciate all the love y'all have given this story and thanks to all of those who have been here since the beginning. Until next time.
> 
> *obligatory lawyer mandated disclaimer here*

**Chapter Twelve**

 

The party wrapped up shortly after they had returned.As hard as Emma had tried to enjoy herself, she’d been unable to completely relax with the clock marching steadily towards midnight and the end of Regina’s time as a human drawing ever closer.As they said their last goodbyes to Granny and Ruby, Emma and Regina found themselves standing in awkward silence in the living area, unable to look at each other.

“You know, I really thought that if we found out what happened, that you’d move on.”Emma looked at Regina apologetically.“But you’re still here.”  
  
“It was as good a theory as any,” Regina assured her, not the least bit upset at Emma.  
  
“I’m sorry,” Emma suddenly blurted out, her eyes wide and insistent.Regina shook her head but before she could say anything, Emma plowed on.“I’m sorry that I’m _not_ sorry we failed.”  
  
The blonde took a step forward, her eyes suddenly filling with tears as she realized they only had mere minutes left.Regina was staring at her, her eyes both hopeful and at the same time, wary.

“The truth is…it would have broken my heart if you were gone,” Emma revealed, the admission falling into the space between them.“I’ve waited to feel like this for a long time, and…as selfish as it may seem, I don’t want you to move on.”  
  
“Emma…” Regina pleaded, the single word broken as it was whispered between them.

“I want you here,” Emma continued, ignoring the fact that Regina’s eyes were now also filled with tears.“With _me_.”

“I only have 12 days to offer,” Regina argued feebly, no actual conviction in her words.

“Well, it’s better than none,” Emma pointed out almost angrily.“And I’ve had plenty of none.”  
  
“But, Emma…I don’t think-,” Regina began as she stepped forward.

“Look, Regina, what if this is our fate?” Emma cut in, unwilling to be deterred.Not this time.“And sure, it’s not conventional, at all, but…I mean, come on.Are we supposed to just pretend like we don’t feel this?”

Emma had stepped closer to Regina until they were standing in each other’s space, barely a breath of air between them.

“Please, tell me you feel this,” Emma begged, her mind suddenly flashing back to the awkward moment they’d shared just mere hours prior.

“You deserve more,” Regina stated determinedly even as her hands came to gently rest on Emma’s biceps.

“But what I want, is _you_ ,” Emma replied softly as her own hand came up to rest on the side of Regina’s neck.

Regina flicked her gaze to the clock sitting on the mantle behind Emma, noting that they had less than a minute left. 

“It’s almost midnight,” she reminded Emma quietly.

“Well then I’ll wait for you,” Emma affirmed her thumb grazing along Regina’s jaw line.“Same time next year.And the year after and the year after that.”

Overwhelmed by Emma’s display of affection and her sincere promise, Regina found herself unable to come up with any further excuses as to why she shouldn’t allow herself to fall for the beautiful woman in front of her.Pulling her into her, her own hand came up to rest at the back of Emma’s neck as she gently pulled the woman’s face towards her own.Her eyes fluttered shut as their noses brushed each others and without giving either one of them a chance to back out, Regina firmly planted her lips on Emma’s just as the clock struck midnight.

The instant their lips touched, there was a pulse of energy and even through her closed lids, Emma could see a spark of light.Before she’d even had time to process what was going on, she felt herself become lightheaded and her knees buckled.Rather than falling, however, she felt herself being gently lifted and placed down on something soft.Even though she knew she should be afraid, Emma had never felt safer as she sank deeper into unconsciousness.She felt as though she were floating, caught in some kind of stasis as she tried to fight her way back to Regina and consciousness but she calmed as Regina’s voice suddenly echoed in her head.

“ _Emma_.” Regina’s voice softly called to her as images of every moment she’d spent at the Inn over the last couple weeks began flashing through her mind.“ _Let this be my Christmas gift to you_.”

As the memories continued to flash in front of Emma, Regina continued speaking.Though her voice was muddled, as though coming from a distance away, it was clear to Emma.

“ _You will remember what it means to love and be deeply loved in return.And when the opportunity for you to love once again presents itself, you will be ready.And it will, Emma.I promise you, it will._ ”

As the memories faded, the last one being of the way Regina had looked at her as they had danced at the end of the night, Emma felt herself drifting off into a fitful sleep, lulled by Regina’s reassurances.As Emma sighed in contentment, Regina gently placed a blanket over her, her hand lingering on her cheek.As she gazed down at her, she could feel the tell-tale pull of the spirit world at her back.She had only seconds left.Placing one last loving kiss on Emma’s forehead, Regina reluctantly stood to await her transformation.After a few moments passed, she had the distinct impression that she was being watched.Turning slightly, she realized that Robin was standing behind her, eyes carefully watching her.

Regina looked from him to the clock on the mantle, shocked when she saw that it read 12:01am.Looking back at Robin, eyes wide, Regina allowed herself to feel hope for the first time in 95 years.

“What does this mean?” she asked tentatively.

“You’re free,” Robin revealed, a smile spreading on his features.“Free from this place.”

With that, he came around to where Regina was standing and offered her his hand.Silently, Regina took it, casting one last regret filled look at Emma.A gentle pressure on her hand was the only sign that Regina needed to know that it was time for her to move on.Knowing that it was the only way to ensure that Emma eventually found true happiness, Regina willingly allowed Robin to lead her from the Inn.They walked outside and through the garden towards the back property line of the Inn.Just before they reached it, Regina suddenly ground to a halt.

“Robin, wait.”

Robin looked at her, confusion on his face.When Regina dropped his hand and simply looked back at the Inn, realization dawned on his face.  
  
“My love,” he said lowly, a kind and understanding smile on his face.“The choice is yours to make.True Love’s kiss has freed you.It is your choice in how you wish to use that freedom.”  
  
Regina looked at him, too stunned to speak as the gravity of his words sank in.After a life abruptly ended in violence and nearly a century stuck between worlds, it appeared Regina was finally being given her chance at a happy ending.  
  
“I don’t understand…” Regina whispered, confusion scrunching up her features as she tried wrap her mind around what Robin was implying.“How is this possible?”

“Regina, you and I were soulmates, which is no simple thing on its own,” Robin explained.“But I was unable to save you and this ‘miracle’, as you called it, was all that I could do to give you a chance once I’d passed.”Robin took a step closer to her, nothing but love in his eyes.“Emma, however…Emma is your True Love.Though it may be unbelievable, as unbelievable as your situation for the past 95 years, True Love has freed you of this place and the hold the spirit world had on your soul.She has given you back your choice.You may stay here and live your life out to its natural end, or you may choose to come with me to the place you have been denied for the past century.”  
  
Regina was speechless, her mind struggling to reconcile her new reality and a choice she never imagined she’d get to make.Sensing her struggle, Robin leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on Regina’s cheek.With one final loving look, he turned and walked beyond the property line, disappearing the instant he crossed.Torn, Regina stood frozen staring at the air he’d just been inhabiting before looking back at the Inn once more.Desperately, she tried to decide her next course of action.

**XXX**

As the warm glow of early morning sunlight slowly broke through the curtains in the living area, Emma gradually gained more awareness as she shook sleep off.  Sitting up, she suddenly felt more alone than she ever had in her entire life.  In an instant, she knew Regina was gone.  Not in her usual ‘see you in 353 days’ gone, but truly moved on, gone.  She could feel the loss in her soul.  Her hand came up to brush over her lips and in that instant, she was overwhelmed with grief.  She broke down on the couch and for the first time since she was a kid, Emma Swan allowed herself to cry.  Violent sobs wracked her body as she tried to comprehend how one person could have such a profound effect on her and leave such a gaping hole in her heart.  
****

After what seemed like hours, Emma finally exhausted herself and her sobs retreated into silent tears that ran down her cheeks.Picking herself up from the couch, she shuffled up to her room as she tried to ignore the echoing silence around her.She started the shower, standing under the hot spray until her skin had turned pink and her mind was numbed.On auto-pilot, she began packing up her things, not willing to spend an extra second within the Inn’s walls when every time she turned around, something else reminded her of Regina.Glancing at her dresser, she saw the worn copy of “A Christmas Carol” sitting atop it and struggled to stifle a second round of tears as she reverently ran her hands over the cover before tucking it into her luggage.

Needing to take a moment, she walked over to the window and peered out, surprised to see Granny and Hunter walking up the front path to the Inn.Emma felt her heart clench in her chest when Hunter suddenly stopped Granny and pulled her close, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss.Quickly retreating from the window, Emma blinked away yet another round of tears as her phone began ringing.Pulling it out, she sighed as she saw Gold’s name pop up.She hadn’t dealt with him yet after she’d up and quit the night before.

“Well, hello, Gold,” Emma sneered, not in the mood for his games.  
  
“Truce?” Gold asked tentatively.

“We aren’t fighting,” Emma shot back.“That’s the advantage of not working together.”  
  
“I think I was a little hasty with the whole ‘priorities’ gauntlet,” Gold admitted miserably.

“You think?” Emma sassed back.

“Ok, I know,” Gold conceded.“The truth is, Emma, I never thought you’d pick _anything_ over this job, ever.But the more I think about it, the more I realize that you’re right.It’s Christmas.You should get a vacation.”  
  
“Sounds lovely,” Emma replied flatly, not really seeing the point of the conversation since she was now on a self-imposed vacation.“Now what do you really want?”  
  
Gold chuckled humorlessly.“The trust deed.For the Inn.I don’t know where it is and I need to get my hands on it ASAP.”

More than a little surprised, Emma couldn’t make herself just hang up on the man like she’d been determined to do when she decided to take the call.

“Why?” She asked suspiciously.

“There’s a buyer in play,” Gold relayed.“Just came out of the blue.Though, if you think about it, it makes sense.”  
  
“Who?”

**XXX**

Emma slowly made her way downstairs, her mind reeling with the name Gold had just given her.  She deposited her bags at the front door as she heard laughter coming from the kitchen.  Walking back there, she smiled when she found Granny and Hunter standing there, faces red with mirth.  
****

“You bought the Inn,” Emma commented as their laughter died down.

“With a partner,” Granny confirmed, her hand finding Hunter’s and squeezing it.“He loves the place as much as I do.”  
  
Seeing Emma’s gaze sweep longingly around them, Granny let go of Hunter’s hand and walked towards Emma.Seeming to take the hint, Hunter excused himself as his phone rang.

“My real goal was and is for Regina to be free,” Granny murmured quietly.

“Who knows?” Emma shrugged, her eyes going glassy once more.“Maybe she is.”  
  
“Granny?”Hunter popped his head back in, apology written on his face.“The cleaning crew is on the phone.They’d like to talk to you.”  
  
“Be right there, Hunter,” Granny told him with a small smile.  
  
Looking at Emma, understanding in her eyes, Granny pulled her in for a hug. 

“You know you will always be welcome here,” Granny mumbled into her shoulder.“It’s what Regina would have wanted.”

“I appreciate that more than you know,” Emma replied, pushing back from the hug.“Same time next year?”  
  
“It’s a date,” Granny agreed with a sad smile.

Emma turned and walked back towards the front door, pausing as her eyes were drawn to the photograph of Regina and the accompanying news article that was still hung on the wall there.Unable to fight it any longer, a few tears escaped and rolled down her cheeks.Reaching up, she tentatively traced the photograph, her fingers trembling. 

“Goodbye, Regina,” she whispered, her voice thick.

Before she could move to gather her bags, the front door swung open, seemingly under its own power.Perplexed, and just a tad hopeful, Emma cautiously approached it.Looking outside, she swore she saw a flash of something in the woods beyond the property line.Forcing herself not to over react, Emma slowly stepped out onto the porch and proceeded down the stairs.She paused when she reached the bottom, her eyes desperately scanning the woods.

After a moment, she saw the flash again, this time able to make out the distinct color of purple.She knew she wasn’t seeing things as her heart rate quickened and she held her breath.The third time she saw the flash, it didn’t disappear.Instead, it was growing steadily closer until she realized it was a jacket.After a moment, she realized the jacket was on a person who was determinedly making their way through knee high snow and towards the Inn.Realizing who it was, Emma took off at a sprint towards the person.

Seeing her coming and reaching slightly less deep snow, Regina also picked up her own pace as she weaved between trees.A few moments later, Emma was colliding with her full body, and her momentum pushed them both back into the snow.Regina let out a muffled and indignant ‘Miss Swan!’ as Emma came down on top of her but neither one of them was willing to let the other go.After a couple moments where Emma reassured herself that she wasn’t dreaming and that Regina was in fact real and in front of her, she pushed herself up just a slight bit so she could look down at Regina.  
  
“You came back,” Emma declared, her hand coming up to rest on Regina’s cheek as relief flooded her system.“How?”  
  
“12 Days wasn’t nearly enough,” Regina stated simply.“I want more.”  
  
Emma smiled, finding her vision going blurry as a result of tears once more, this time happy.

“I want you,” she heard Regina murmur softly and then she felt herself being pulled down once more.

When their lips connected, Emma managed (just barely) to stay conscious this time.They were both cold and there were happy tears from both of them in the mix making the kiss sloppy, but neither one cared.They were just happy to have an opportunity at more than just 12 days a year together.When they finally broke the kiss and Emma leaned back just a slight bit, Regina beamed up at her.  
  
“Merry Christmas, Emma.”

**Epilogue**

**One Year Later, Christmas Eve**  
****

Emma laid in bed, her eyes glued to the ceiling as her hands nervously played with a string hanging off the sheet.For what felt like the millionth time, she lifted the pocket watch and glanced at the hands with the aid of moonlight.Her heart rate skyrocketed when she saw the hands indicating it was 11:55pm.Her gaze traveled to the lump under the blankets at her side, Regina fast asleep beside her.Trying to tamper down her anxiety, Emma found herself reaching out to gently brush hair back from the other woman’s face.She smiled and felt that telltale feeling in her chest when Regina unconsciously leaned into the touch.

She couldn’t believe it had been a year since the beautiful woman beside her had come almost literally floating into her life.It hadn’t all been easy, of course.Regina’s utter ignorance and aversion to most things modern made her either very difficult to deal with or bend over backwards with laughter hilarious depending on the day and her mood.Despite that, it had easily been the best year of Emma’s life.She’d gone back to Boston, taking Regina with her, but only to finally close the sale of the Inn out and pack her apartment up despite Gold’s best attempts at begging her to come back.Emma had vehemently refused.After that, and showing Regina her favorite places and things around town, they’d driven back up to Storybrooke where Granny had graciously allowed Regina to keep her room.

Emma had insisted on renting an apartment, telling Regina that even though they were “True Loves”, as Regina liked to put it, there would come times when they’d both want their own space.And to be completely honest, the pressure and expectations of being someone’s true love- even Regina’s- freaked Emma out sometimes.So Ruby had offered her the one bedroom apartment above her pub, barely charging her rent for it, which Emma was more than grateful for as she tried to figure out what she was going to do career wise.

It turned out to only be a few weeks before a career opportunity presented itself to Emma in the form of Sheriff.Graham, who had apparently met a stunning woman at a New Years Eve party ended up suddenly quitting to travel the world with her.Last Emma had heard, they were in Dubai and still over the moon in love.It had obviously left the position open and it had been both Granny and Regina who had encouraged Emma to take up the mantle.When the city council had met and agreed, Emma suddenly but happily found herself as Sheriff of Storybrooke.Even Regina had found a niche for herself in the modern world, taking up as a bartender at Ruby’s pub and quickly becoming the town’s favorite cocktail fixer.Emma was sure it had something to do with Regina’s knack at unique and long forgotten twentieth century cocktails.

Casting another nervous glance at the pocket watch, Emma felt her stomach knot itself as the hands moved closer and closer to midnight.Regina had assured her numerous times over the last year that she wasn’t going anywhere, that she was there to stay, but as Christmas had drawn closer, Emma had found herself becoming more and more anxious that God, or whoever was in charge, would realize their mistake and take Regina from her.After all, it wasn’t every day someone who had been dead for almost a century miraculously came back to life.Regina had tried to explain the concept of True Love’s Kiss to Emma, and sure, she’d seen Disney movies when she was a kid, but despite Regina being real and in front of her on a daily basis, Emma just couldn’t convince herself that she was worth a happy ending.

That was why, despite the fact that she was truly, deeply, unapologetically in love with Regina, she hadn’t yet worked up the courage to actual tell the other woman how she felt.She’d taken to expressing her feelings through actions, and though Regina was much freer with her feelings- telling Emma after only a few weeks that she loved her- Emma couldn’t magically undo years of abandonment issues.Plus, she was still waring with the nagging feeling that one morning she would wake up and Regina would be gone.

“You’re thinking very loudly,” came a raspy murmur.

“I’m sorry,” Emma apologized as she pressed a kiss to Regina’s temple.  
  
A smile flickered on the woman’s face as she snuggled back further into Emma, eyes still closed. 

“What has you up and worried?” Regina inquired, pulling Emma’s arm across her body and bringing her knuckles to her lips as she placed a gentle but loving kiss to them.

“Nothing,” Emma dismissed as she began placing chaste kisses on the back of her neck.She felt Regina shifting over to face her and knew it was only a matter of time until the true level of her worry was discovered.Regina had a way of seeing right through her-something they had both discovered they could do quite well.She knew it was pointless to pretend that she was anything but anxious.“Us…you.”  
  
Either her words or her tone of voice must have piqued Regina’s curiosity because Regina turned to fully face her and her eyes fluttered open to pin Emma with an all knowing gaze.Regina immediately picked up on the extent of Emma’s anxiety, as Emma had known she would, and she gently tried to smooth the wrinkles forming between the blonde’s brows.  
  
“All this worrying will age you faster,” Regina jested lightheartedly as her hand came to rest on Emma’s cheek.“Please don’t worry on my account.I promise you I’m not going anywhere.”  
  
“I know,” Emma assured her as she rested her forehead against Regina’s.

“Do you?” Regina asked, her eyes boring into Emma’s.“Because you’ve been tense all week, more so than usual, and you haven’t been sleeping.”  
  
As if emphasizing her point, Regina’s thumb gently stroked at the dark bags beneath her eyes that had appeared in the last week.Emma let out a shuddering breath as her eyes fluttered closed and she leaned into the soft touch.Emma had found that she was addicted to Regina’s touch, tension escaping her instantly at the gentle of caress of a hand, the barest brush of lips on hers, even just a reassuring squeeze here and there.In all her previous relationships she’d been standoffish and staunchly against PDA.While she was still uncomfortable with more than hand holding in public, she craved Regina’s touch and the feeling was mutual with Regina seeking her out just as much. 

The silence stretched between them, Regina able to tell that Emma was struggling with herself and what to say to Regina.Patient as ever, Regina pulled Emma’s hand to her and placed it over her chest, directly over her heart in an effort to assuage some of Emma’s fears.Her thumb brushed gently across the back of Emma’s hand as it rested on her chest, her other hand still resting on Emma’s cheek. 

The feel of Regina’s heartbeat beneath her palm seemed to shake Emma out of her internal struggle as her eyes finally blinked open.As she raised them to meet Regina’s, she found the other woman quietly regarding her in that understanding way of hers.That understanding compelled Emma to finally reveal one of the deepest parts of her, something she’d sworn she would never do.

“My whole life, everyone has left me,” Emma whispered.Regina’s gentle touches paused as Emma’s confession fell into the space between them.“You were a ghost for 95 years, Regina.I’m petrified that I will wake up tomorrow and you’ll be gone, just like you were supposed to be at this time every year.That you’ll have left me just like everyone else.”  
  
Emma rarely spoke of her past or her childhood, the subjects still too painful for her to ruminate on for long, even with Regina.Regina understood that the mental trauma from that time in her life had built the woman before her and rather than pity her for it, she was actually thankful for it because she loved every dark and twisted part of the woman in front of her.Carding her fingers through Emma’s hair in a motion that she’d found relaxed the blonde, Regina patiently waited for her to continue, knowing that opening up was so incredibly difficult for Emma to do.  
  
“I’ve been lying here trying to convince myself that I deserve this, that I deserve to be happy.”Emma’s eyes were glassy as she quickly looked away from Regina and began twisting the sheet with her fingers as a distraction.“That I deserve _you_.”

“My love, I swear to you that I am staying, that I will never leave,” Regina reassured her for the umpteenth time.“I was given the choice and I chose you.I would choose you every time.”  
  
Rather than respond, Emma just nodded her head.They’d had this conversation numerous times over the past year, but that clearly hadn’t dampened the dread that this night brought Emma.She’d been seeing the local psychiatrist Dr. Hopper, and he’d been working with her and convincing her that she should be nicer to herself; it was slow progress to say the least.Downstairs, the grandfather clock began chiming, indicating it was finally midnight and Christmas Day.Emma couldn’t help the quiet gasp that escaped her lips as her eyes suddenly flicked back to Regina’s, anxiety shining clearly in them.

“I am yours, forever,” Regina whispered as she leaned in and brushed her lips across Emma’s.“As long as you will have me.”

Regina pressed another chaste kiss to her lips and suddenly the anxiety of the past few weeks overwhelmed Emma as she surged forward and rolled them both until she was resting on top of Regina.Her kisses turned desperate as she sank into them, Regina matching her fervency.Her heart pounded in her chest as she simultaneously listened to each chime ring out from downstairs.Any moment now, she expected Regina to disappear from beneath her.She lost count around the sixth chime when Regina’s tongue forced its way into her mouth and a wandering hand was suddenly skating across the rapidly heating skin of her abdomen.Emma moaned into the kiss and she felt Regina smirk against her lips as that wandering hand settled on Emma’s hip and gently squeezed. 

Suddenly realizing that it had fallen quiet downstairs, Emma abruptly pushed herself away from Regina and her eyes flew open, noting the wry expression on the brunettes face below her.Scrambling, Emma pulled the pocket watch from where it had been pushed beneath her pillow.Popping it open, she let out a breath of relief as the hands read off 12:01am.Her eyes fluttered closed as tears suddenly burned in her throat and she felt Regina’s soft hand come up to cover her now trembling hand.The watch was quietly closed and Regina gently pried it from her grip before reaching behind her and depositing it on the nightstand.It gave Emma a chance to regain control of herself and her eyes opened to find Regina watching her with amusement.

“I thought I’d proven early on in our relationship that I was more than a little difficult to be rid of,” she remarked as a smirk tugged at her lips.

“Yes, it was rather annoying and troublesome for my head if I remember correctly,” Emma mused, smiling as well.“Lucky for you I came along when I did.You’d still be an angry, bitter, ghost otherwise.”  
  
Regina scoffed but her indignation was undercut by the now clear smile on her lips.“I was doing just fine on my own, I’ll have you know.”  
  
Emma’s smile stretched as she leaned back down to plant her lips firmly on Regina’s once more. 

“No offense, but I _definitely_ prefer you corporeal.”Emma’s hand skated across Regina’s collarbone and down her arm, as though emphasizing her point.  
  
Regina chuckled quietly at that as she stalled Emma’s progress by interlacing their fingers.“Trust me, you are not alone in that preference.”  
  
Emma pushed herself up on her elbow once more, releasing Regina’s hand to brush some loose strands of hair from Regina’s face.As the moonlight streamed in through the window and lit the woman below her in a cool glow, Emma suddenly realized that Regina had been right.That she wasn’t going anywhere, that they both deserved to be happy.She felt the words tumbling from her mouth before she fully realized the thought.

“I love you, Regina.”  
  
Everything seemed to stop as the admission fell between them and Regina stared up at her in wonder.In an instant, Regina was surging up to meet her lips, the kiss messy but filled with everything that Regina was feeling.After a few moments, Emma pulled back, breathless.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t say it before now-,” she began but was stopped with a single look from the other woman.

“You’ve nothing to apologize for, my love,” Regina assured her as her hand came to rest on Emma’s cheek.“I knew even if you couldn’t voice it.Your actions spoke louder than three words ever could, not that I wish to discount how significant they are to me now.”

“I wanted to say it before, but the words just got stuck in my throat,” Emma blurted, still feeling like she owed Regina an explanation.“I was scared of my own feelings.Then Christmas was drawing closer and I just felt like if I said it, it would be a goodbye instead.”  
  
Regina just gave her a sad and understanding smile, her thumb gently brushing back and forth on Emma’s cheek.

“But God, Regina, I love you so much more than I could ever tell you.”Emma leaned into her hand and sighed in relief, as though finally being able to utter those three words was a weight lifted from her soul.“Forever won’t be long enough for me.”  
  
“Nor for me,” Regina agreed as her hand wound into Emma’s hair and gently brushed at the soft hairs at the nape of her neck.“I love you, Emma Swan.Always.”  
  
Smiling wide, Emma leaned back in and captured Regina’s lips in a slower but no less meaningful kiss.Neither one of them knew where their lives would go from there, but they knew they had all the time in the world to figure it out.


End file.
